Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners
Abstract Background More than 55 million people worldwide have dementia, and every year, 10 million new cases are diagnosed. In the United States (U.S.) alone, 6.9 million Americans ages 65 and older have dementia. Health systems are searching for innovative solutions to expand the primary care syst...
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| Language: | English |
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BMC
2025-05-01
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| Series: | BMC Primary Care |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-025-02855-5 |
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| author | Lusine Poghosyan Maura Dougherty Grant R. Martsolf Kyle Featherston Josh Porat-Dahlerbruch Soo Borson Tatiana Sadak Siqing Wang Monica O’Reilly-Jacob |
| author_facet | Lusine Poghosyan Maura Dougherty Grant R. Martsolf Kyle Featherston Josh Porat-Dahlerbruch Soo Borson Tatiana Sadak Siqing Wang Monica O’Reilly-Jacob |
| author_sort | Lusine Poghosyan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background More than 55 million people worldwide have dementia, and every year, 10 million new cases are diagnosed. In the United States (U.S.) alone, 6.9 million Americans ages 65 and older have dementia. Health systems are searching for innovative solutions to expand the primary care system’s capacity to care for these patients. Advanced practice nurses such as nurse practitioners (NPs) are vital to increasing primary care capacity to meet the need, yet primary care NPs often face structural, organizational, and workforce challenges. More specifically, little is known about NPs who care for dementia patients in primary care settings. This study explored the practice structural capabilities, organizational context, and job outcomes (i.e., burnout, job dissatisfaction, and intent to leave the practice) among NPs providing care for patients with dementia in U.S. primary care practices. Methods We conducted a national cross-sectional survey of NPs using modified Dillman methods. Between 2021 and 2023, NPs working in primary care practices who cared for patients with dementia received a mail and online survey. Additional survey mailings, emails, postcard reminders, and phone calls encouraged non-respondents to participate. In total, 968 NPs responded across 847 practices. We estimated a response rate of 16.4-36.4%. Results NPs reported that the quality of dementia care in their practices is poorer than the overall care provided. About 45% of NPs indicated that dementia care in their practices is less than “very good,” while only 17% reported that the overall care delivered falls below that standard. Additionally, NPs reported significant deficits in practice structural capabilities for dementia care and challenges with administration within their organization. The findings show that over a third of NPs report burnout. Conclusions Given the projected growth in the number of patients with dementia and the growing workforce of NPs worldwide, policy and practice efforts should be directed toward strengthening primary care practices to provide quality care for dementia patients. Bolstering NP workforce capacity and supporting NP roles in dementia care could improve organizational capacity to provide dementia care. However, widespread burnout among NPs found in our study could undermine their contribution to the dementia care workforce. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-b745f22dcc724eabbb0547daa2c48a6d |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2731-4553 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Primary Care |
| spelling | doaj-art-b745f22dcc724eabbb0547daa2c48a6d2025-08-20T03:48:06ZengBMCBMC Primary Care2731-45532025-05-0126111010.1186/s12875-025-02855-5Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitionersLusine Poghosyan0Maura Dougherty1Grant R. Martsolf2Kyle Featherston3Josh Porat-Dahlerbruch4Soo Borson5Tatiana Sadak6Siqing Wang7Monica O’Reilly-Jacob8Center for Healthcare Delivery Research and Innovation, Columbia University School of NursingCenter for Healthcare Delivery Research and Innovation, Columbia University School of NursingDepartment of Acute and Tertiary Care, University of Pittsburgh School of NursingCenter for Healthcare Delivery Research and Innovation, Columbia University School of NursingDepartment of Acute and Tertiary Care, University of Pittsburgh School of NursingDepartment of Family Medicine, Keck USC School of MedicineYale University School of NursingCenter for Healthcare Delivery Research and Innovation, Columbia University School of NursingCenter for Healthcare Delivery Research and Innovation, Columbia University School of NursingAbstract Background More than 55 million people worldwide have dementia, and every year, 10 million new cases are diagnosed. In the United States (U.S.) alone, 6.9 million Americans ages 65 and older have dementia. Health systems are searching for innovative solutions to expand the primary care system’s capacity to care for these patients. Advanced practice nurses such as nurse practitioners (NPs) are vital to increasing primary care capacity to meet the need, yet primary care NPs often face structural, organizational, and workforce challenges. More specifically, little is known about NPs who care for dementia patients in primary care settings. This study explored the practice structural capabilities, organizational context, and job outcomes (i.e., burnout, job dissatisfaction, and intent to leave the practice) among NPs providing care for patients with dementia in U.S. primary care practices. Methods We conducted a national cross-sectional survey of NPs using modified Dillman methods. Between 2021 and 2023, NPs working in primary care practices who cared for patients with dementia received a mail and online survey. Additional survey mailings, emails, postcard reminders, and phone calls encouraged non-respondents to participate. In total, 968 NPs responded across 847 practices. We estimated a response rate of 16.4-36.4%. Results NPs reported that the quality of dementia care in their practices is poorer than the overall care provided. About 45% of NPs indicated that dementia care in their practices is less than “very good,” while only 17% reported that the overall care delivered falls below that standard. Additionally, NPs reported significant deficits in practice structural capabilities for dementia care and challenges with administration within their organization. The findings show that over a third of NPs report burnout. Conclusions Given the projected growth in the number of patients with dementia and the growing workforce of NPs worldwide, policy and practice efforts should be directed toward strengthening primary care practices to provide quality care for dementia patients. Bolstering NP workforce capacity and supporting NP roles in dementia care could improve organizational capacity to provide dementia care. However, widespread burnout among NPs found in our study could undermine their contribution to the dementia care workforce.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-025-02855-5Primary careDementiaNurse practitionersQuality careHealth workforce |
| spellingShingle | Lusine Poghosyan Maura Dougherty Grant R. Martsolf Kyle Featherston Josh Porat-Dahlerbruch Soo Borson Tatiana Sadak Siqing Wang Monica O’Reilly-Jacob Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners BMC Primary Care Primary care Dementia Nurse practitioners Quality care Health workforce |
| title | Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| title_full | Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| title_fullStr | Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| title_full_unstemmed | Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| title_short | Dementia care management in primary care practices: a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| title_sort | dementia care management in primary care practices a descriptive study among nurse practitioners |
| topic | Primary care Dementia Nurse practitioners Quality care Health workforce |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-025-02855-5 |
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