Establishing a clinical psychology team within the orthognathic service: A triad model of orthodontic, maxillofacial and psychological care.

The importance of psychological support for orthognathic patients has taken an increasing precedence over recent years and is embedded in orthognathic commissioning guidelines. Furthermore, attention towards mental health-related conditions and their management is of prime importance and continues to be a key area of focus within healthcare settings. With this in mind, this paper aims to outline our experience of establishing a need for and subsequently securing funding to establish a clinical psychology service within an existing orthognathic service in the NHS. The information outlined may be of benefit to orthognathic teams seeking to secure such psychological support within their respective units.

Compassion focused therapy for people with dementia: A feasibility study.

OBJECTIVES: There is a lack of evidence-based psychological therapies for dementia and psychological distress. The study aimed to develop a compassion focused therapy intervention for people with dementia with depression and/or anxiety, and to assess its feasibility, acceptability, and utility. METHODS: A mixed methods multiple case series (n = 7) was used to assess the intervention's feasibility and changes in self-compassion, mood, anxiety, and quality of life. Outcome measures were administered at pre-intervention, midpoint, and post-intervention. Data were analysed using reliable change and clinically significant change. Thematic analysis on post-therapy interviews and session rating forms was used to assess acceptability and perceived change from the intervention. RESULTS: Over the course of the intervention, improvements in mood, anxiety, and self-compassion were seen, and three of six participants moved out of the clinical depression range. Six participants were able to engage in soothing rhythm breathing, and five in discussion of self-criticism and developing self-compassion. Several participants and their carers described increased self-compassion in response to cognitive decline. CONCLUSIONS: Compassion focused therapy can be adapted to be delivered to people with dementia and low mood, anxiety, or other distress. The intervention may improve self-compassion, mood, and anxiety. A larger pilot trial with a comparator group and follow-up is needed to evaluate the intervention's effectiveness for people with dementia.

A Mindfulness Program Manual for People With Dementia.

This article describes a 10-session group-based Mindfulness Program for people with mild to moderate dementia. It aims to equip people with dementia with skills to manage psychological distress, with support from carers. The Mindfulness Program was developed through reviews of existing literature, consultation with experts, and a focus group with people with dementia. In a randomized controlled feasibility and pilot trial with people with mild to moderate dementia in care homes, it was found to significantly increase quality of life. The manual presented here is designed to be administered flexibly to promote participants' personhood. The protocol is designed for use by therapists with experience in practicing mindfulness meditation.

Improving website accessibility for people with early-stage dementia: a preliminary investigation.

This study, conducted collaboratively with five men who have a diagnosis of early-stage Alzheimer's disease (AD), is the first stage of a formative research project aimed at developing a new website for people with dementia. Recommendations derived from a literature review of the implications of dementia-related cognitive changes for website design were combined with general web accessibility guidelines to provide a basis for the initial design of a new website. This website was compared with an equivalent site, containing the same information but based on an existing design, in terms of accessibility, ease of use, and user satisfaction. Participants were very satisfied with both sites, but responses did indicate some specific areas where one site was preferred over another. Observational data highlighted significant strengths of the new site as well as some limitations, and resulted in clear recommendations for enhancing the design. In particular, the study suggested that limiting the size of web pages to the amount of information that can be displayed on a computer screen at any one time could reduce the level of difficulty encountered by the participants. The results also suggested the importance of reducing cognitive load through limiting the number of choices required at any one time, the very opposite of the ethos of much website design.

Efficacy of an evidence-based cognitive stimulation therapy programme for people with dementia: randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: A recent Cochrane review of reality orientation therapy identified the need for large, well-designed, multi-centre trials. AIMS: To test the hypothesis that cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) for older people with dementia would benefit cognition and quality of life. METHOD: A single-blind, multi-centre, randomised controlled trial recruited 201 older people with dementia. The main outcome measures were change in cognitive function and quality of life. An intention-to-treat analysis used analysis of covariance to control for potential variability in baseline measures. RESULTS: One hundred and fifteen people were randomised within centres to the intervention group and 86 to the control group. At follow-up the intervention group had significantly improved relative to the control group on the Mini-Mental State Examination (P=0.044), the Alzheimer's Disease Assessment Scale - Cognition (ADAS-Cog) (P=0.014) and Quality of Life - Alzheimer's Disease scales (P=0.028). Using criteria of 4 points or more improvement on the ADAS-Cog the number needed to treat was 6 for the intervention group. CONCLUSION: The results compare favourably with trials of drugs for dementia. CST groups may have worthwhile benefits for many people with dementia.