Western Journal of Nursing Research

 

Advanced Search

Journal Navigation

Journal Home

Subscriptions

Archive

Contact Us

Table of Contents

Click here to register today!

Click here to register today!

Sign In to gain access to subscriptions and/or personal tools.
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
0193945907305126v1
30/4/417    most recent
Right arrow References
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to Saved Citations
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Add to My Marked Citations
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Hawranik, P.
Right arrow Articles by Deatrich, J.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Hawranik, P.
Right arrow Articles by Deatrich, J.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us   Add to Digg   Add to Reddit   Add to Technorati  
What's this?
This version was published on June 1, 2008
Western Journal of Nursing Research, Vol. 30, No. 4, 417-434 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/0193945907305126
© 2008 SAGE Publications

Therapeutic Touch and Agitation in Individuals With Alzheimer's Disease

Pamela Hawranik

University of Manitoba, pam_hawranik{at}umanitoba.ca

Pat Johnston

Self-Employed

Judith Deatrich

Health Sciences Centre, Winnepeg, Manitoba

Limited effective strategies exist to alleviate or treat disruptive behaviors in people with Alzheimer's disease. Fifty-one residents of a long-term care facility with Alzheimer's disease were randomly assigned to one of three intervention groups. A multiple time series, blinded, experimental design was used to compare the effectiveness of therapeutic touch, simulated therapeutic touch, and usual care on disruptive behavior. Three forms of disruptive behavior comprised the dependent variables: physical aggression, physical nonaggression, and verbal agitation. Physical nonaggressive behaviors decreased significantly in those residents who received therapeutic touch compared with those who received the simulated version and the usual care. No significant differences in physically aggressive and verbally agitated behaviors were observed across the three study groups. The study provided preliminary evidence for the potential for therapeutic touch in dealing with agitated behaviors by people with dementia. Researchers and practitioners must consider a broad array of strategies to deal with these behaviors.

Key Words: therapeutic touch • Alzheimer's disease • nonpharmacological interventions • complementary therapies


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us   Add to Digg Digg   Add to Reddit Reddit   Add to Technorati Technorati    What's this?