Differences in Dementia Beliefs between Non-Demented Public Screeners and In-Home Screeners and Their
Potential Impact on Future Dementia Screening Intention: The Nakajima Study
Affiliations: [a]
Department of Neurology and Neurobiology of Aging, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
| [b]
Department of Physical Therapy, School of Health Sciences, College of Medical, Pharmaceutical, and Health Sciences, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
| [c] Bishoen Geriatric Health Services Facility, Suzu, Ishikawa, Japan
| [d]
Department of Neurology, Iou Hospital, National Hospital Organization, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
| [e]
Department of Environmental and Preventive Medicine, Kanazawa University Graduate School of Medical Sciences, Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan
Abstract: In many cohort studies of dementia, while differences in sociodemographic characters between responders and non-responders of dementia screening have been reported, differences in dementia beliefs have been relatively less known. The aims of this study were to clarify dementia beliefs and to explore potential impacts on an intention to attend a future dementia screening in public screeners and in-home screeners, respectively. We performed a cross-sectional population-based study using a question about an intention to attend a future dementia screening and a questionnaire on dementia beliefs. Subjects were all residents aged 65 years or older in the north area of Nakajima, Japan (n = 385). All subjects were asked to attend a public dementia screening first. An in-home dementia screening was subsequently conducted in subjects with non-responders to a public screening. The questionnaire consisted of four dementia beliefs: “perceived susceptibility,” “perceived severity,” “perceived barriers,” and “perceived benefits.” Public screeners significantly expressed an intention to attend a future dementia screening more than in-home screeners (p = 0.002). In in-home screeners, low “perceived severity” were significantly associated with an intention to attend a future dementia screening [adjusted OR (95% CI) = 0.51 (0.32–0.80)]. In both public and in-home screeners, high “perceived benefits” were significantly associated with an intention to attend a future dementia screening [adjusted OR (95% CI) = 2.13 (1.46–3.10); adjusted OR (95% CI) = 2.56 (1.22–5.35), respectively]. It is necessary to reduce “perceived severity” among in-home screeners to increase dementia screening participants.
