‘Awakened Art Stories’—Rediscovering pictures by persons living with dementia utilising TimeSlips: A Pilot Study

Introduction

‘Awakened Art Stories’ is the first creative expression intervention study for persons with dementia (PWD) and their caregivers. The study was conducted at the Kunsthaus Museum in Switzerland. The intervention utilised TimeSlips to encourage persons living with dementia to create stories about artwork in response to open-ended questions. The aim of this pilot study was to assess the efficacy and feasibility of an intervention through storytelling and a social gathering.

Materials and method

A mixed-method pre-post design using semi-structured interviews, written questionnaires, validated and adapted scales, and a self-generated observations' sheet as well as a visual analogue scale assessed the efficacy as well as the feasibility of the intervention. Participants were four PWDs and their caregivers as well as four volunteers, who supported the PWDs during the sessions. Qualitative data were analysed using thematic analyses and descriptive observations, as well as further feedback from participants, while a Wilcoxon signed-rank test was used to analyse quantitative data.

Results

The quantitative findings revealed a statistically significant, positive effect on PWDs' and caregivers' mood on the Smiley-Face Assessment Scale directly after the museum session (all participants: Z=−4.84, p<0.001; PWDs: Z=−3.57, p<0.001; Caregivers: Z=−3.34, p<0.001). On the Dementia Attitudes Scale, no significant differences in the caregivers' and volunteers' attitudes towards dementia were found. No significant differences were found on the Caregiver Burden Inventory either. Although the qualitative findings revealed via thematic analyses that while PWDs attributed their mood to the atmosphere, caregivers attributed it rather to social contacts. All caregivers and most of the volunteers reported a positive change in their attitude towards dementia. In addition, PWDs' reported that they welcomed the opportunity to contribute and express their thoughts. All participants were highly satisfied with their experience.

Conclusion

Despite the small sample size, the many benefits of making art accessible to PWDs and their caregivers, as well as the feasibility of an innovative intervention based on TimeSlips resulted in both quantitative and qualitative evidence.