An alternative theoretical approach to develop a new conception about pain in people with dementia

Morgner, Christian; Dening, Karen Harrison; Dening, Tom; Gibson, Barry

Abstract

The theoretical approach presented in this paper describes a novel experimental-theoretical methodology to conceptualise pain in people with dementia. Existing procedures for assessment of pain rely on subjective self-report using pain questionnaires and rating scales that have proven to be highly problematic where a person has dementia. Consequently, pain in people with dementia can be undetected and/or undertreated. To address that, we have developed an alternative experimental approach that builds on theoretical and methodological precedents from the arts, humanities and social sciences, for instance, visual thinking strategies, creative thinking or two-step flow of communication. Based on this approach, we designed an experimental workshop setting to ingrate these methodologies to explore pain and its expression in people with dementia. This had led to a new definition of pain as an interruption of the socially mediated process of bodily meaning-making. Furthermore, our experimental methodology could equally well be applied as a training method, where professional staff can intervene into existing implicit meanings and understandings of medical issues. These results emphasise that the future of pain research needs to consider the relational aspects of pain more seriously.

Citation

Morgner, C., Dening, K. H., Dening, T., & Gibson, B. (2024). An alternative theoretical approach to develop a new conception about pain in people with dementia. Medical Humanities, https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2023-012718

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Apr 9, 2024
• Online Publication Date: May 27, 2024
• Publication Date: May 27, 2024
• Deposit Date: Jun 25, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Jul 5, 2024
• Journal: Medical Humanities
• Print ISSN: 1468-215X
• Electronic ISSN: 1473-4265
• Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2023-012718
• Keywords: Medical humanities, fine art, dementia, pain management
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/35713289
• Publisher URL: https://mh.bmj.com/content/early/2024/05/27/medhum-2023-012718