Social, Physical Environmental and Organizational Factors related to Recreational Activity of Residents with Dementia in Long-Term Care Homes: A Scoping Review Protocol

Abstract

Introduction Recreational activity is a rising topic in long-term care settings as it contributes to residents' physical and emotional wellbeing. As residents' abilities of sustaining and initiating activities decline, the care environment becomes vital in supporting residents maintain meaningful engagement in activities and life. Understanding how various aspects of the care environment influence residents' opportunities and quality of recreational activity engagement is a timely and relevant topic in the context of improving quality of life for residents with dementia. The research questions guiding this scoping review are: (1) How do staff characteristics and organisational policies influence residents' levels of participation in planned and self-directed activities? (2) What is the role of the physical environmental features in common spaces of the care setting in supporting residents' activity participation? Methods and analysis This review will follow the Arksey and O'Malley scoping review methodology. The search strategy will be applied to five bibliographic and citation databases. Study selection will occur in two steps: first, two reviewers will screen the titles and abstracts of all search results, and second, the first author will independently conduct a full-text review. Data will be extracted from the included studies and analyzed using Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis. The extracted data will be presented in a narrative format, accompanied by tables that reflect the review's objectives. Ethics and dissemination Since the methodology of the study involves collecting data from publicly available publications, it does not require ethics approval. The findings will offer valuable insights to inform the design, practice and research of long-term care and recreational activities. The scoping review results will be disseminated through an open- access publication in a peer-reviewed journal.