Smertevurdering hos demensramte - detektivarbejde uden lup: Et studie af hvordan sundhedsprofessionelle identificerer og vurderer smerter hos borgere med moderat til svær Alzheimers sygdom.

Studies show that it is challenging for healthcare professionals (HCPs) to identify and assess pain in elderly persons with moderate to severe Alzheimer’s disease, primarily because persons with severe dementia have a reduced capability to express pain verbally. This can lead to insufficient detection and treatment of pain. The aim of the study is to explore how HCPs identify and assess pain in elderly persons with Alzheimer’s disease. Twenty-three HCPs were interviewed from April 2020 to March 2022. Transcriptions of the interviews were coded using Clarke and Braun’s approach to thematic analysis. Two themes were derived from data: 1) Pain assessment – detective’s work 2) Pain assessment – a collaboration with strengths and weaknesses. The conclusion is that identification and assessment of pain is primarily done by experience without the help of a pain assessment tool. The quality of life can be threatened by the lack of systematic pain assessment and insufficient professional collaboration.