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Neuroimmunol Neuroinflammation 2018;5:37 I http://dx.doi.org/10.20517/2347-8659.2018.45 Page 9 of 9

12. Life quality and the self in severe dementia: an intervention

Sylva Sarafidou

Center of Psychology

The goal of psychosocial interventions in dementia is to improve the quality of life (QOL) of the sufferer.
Dementia is a multifaceted disorder that affects many aspects of life and of the self. An effective intervention
could target all aspects of the self, and of the disorder. The ultimate goal is to improve the QOL of the
person, through enhancing the self, and all its aspects. This is challenging in severe dementia.

An intervention took place that aimed at enhancing all domains of the self, in order to improve QOL.
Participants were 3 females and 2 males. All experienced individual sessions, three times per week for
two months, with activities using all arts, while focusing on existing skills. The activities had a cognitive
component, an emotional (expressive) one, a behavioral, and physical engagement.

These individuals had severe dementia, and no family caregivers, making assessment challenging. In order
to detect the self, the I-AM test was used (requiring the completion of ten sentences starting with “I am...”),
and to detect QOL, the QUALID Scale was used- an observational measure completed by the researcher and
by professional caregivers.

The assessment indicated an improvement in the sense of self, and in QOL for all participants. This result
can be explained psychotherapeutically and neuroscientifically: participants were brought to the “here and
now” and their existing skills (and self) were enhanced, making them more functional; thus, improving
their QOL, while several brain functions were combined and engaged in each session, promoting the
delaying of the disorder.

Several implications arise: the self is maintained in dementia, even in the latest stage, and could be targeted
in treatment, while it appears to be linked with QOL. Finally, there is a need for an intervention in severe
dementia, a need to improve the living of the sufferers, and a need to focus on the abilities that remain.