Using appreciative participatory action research to guide culture change work in community and long-term care
Blog post by Janet KL McKeown for the article by Janet KL McKeown, Darla Fortune, and Sherry Dupuis
How can appreciative Participatory Action Research (PAR) be used to change the culture of care in long-term care and community care? What can culture change look like in these care contexts when guided by this approach?
These are the questions we set out to explore in this paper, as part of our work for the Partnerships in Dementia Care (PiDC) Alliance, a research group dedicated to improving the quality of life, the care experience, and the supports provided for persons living with dementia, their partners in care, and staff working in care settings.
This paper highlights the culture change work taking place in two unique care settings: a long-term care home and a community care setting in Ontario, Canada.
Staff, family members, residents/persons living with dementia, and researchers, interested in enhancing the culture of care in these care settings, formed culture change coalitions and the coalitions moved through an appreciate PAR approach to culture change.
Through ongoing critical reflection about their work, the coalitions recognized that they did not have to wait until the end of the process to appreciate the meaningful and impactful culture changes that were taking shape as a result of their work together. Many culture changes were happening along the way. These culture changes energized the members of these coalitions and helped to fuel their culture change work forward.
You can access this article for free for the next 30 days starting January 12 by using THIS LINK.
After you’ve had a chance to read this piece, please share your thoughts, ideas, or experiences with our community so we can continue this discussion! The AR+ site is hosting a discussion forum for us to talk about our reactions and experiences related this topic. You can access the discussion forum HERE.
Columbia Embury
www.wright.edu
www.wright.edu
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