Understanding Practices and Support Needs of Family Caregivers of People with Dementia in Africa: A Scoping Review Protocol
Oluwagbemiga Oyinlola 
, Tamara Sussman & Anthony Iwuagwu
Issue: Vol.5 No.7 Issue Article 4 pp.1103-1110
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2024574| Published online 2nd July, 2024
© 2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Extant literature has reported the challenges and stressors caregivers of people with dementia face globally. Local realities and contexts often shape these challenges. For example, in regions of Africa where the prevalence of caregiving is increasing, beliefs about dementia and limited infrastructures create unique challenges for caregivers, potentially restricting caregivers’ capacities. Yet directions for policy, practice, and research are often informed by research conducted in regions outside of Africa or fail to account for local contexts. This scoping review seeks to understand the knowledge base on regional differences and similarities in the experiences of caregivers supporting persons with dementia in the region of Africa. The review will be guided by Arksey and O’Malley’s five-stage- framework. Five databases: Ageline, MEDLINE, Social Science Abstract, Psych-Info, and African-wide information will be searched. Citations from these databases will be subjected to two levels of screening The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) will describe and document the inclusion and exclusion process. This scoping review will improve our understanding of unique practices and pressures experienced by caregivers of persons with dementia in different localities in Africa. It will also identify support needs and knowledge gaps in African region.
Keywords: Dementia, Caregivers, Older Adults, Support Needs, Experiences
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Oluwagbemiga Oyinlola is a doctoral candidate at McGill University School of Social Work, Montreal, Canada, and a Principal Medical Social Worker at the Medical Social Services Department, University College Hospital, Ibadan.
Professor Tamara Sussman is a full professor of Social Work at McGill University School of Social Work, Montreal Canada.
Anthony Iwuagwu is a teaching fellow at the Department of Social Work, University of Nigeria, Enugu, Nigeria, and a doctoral candidate at the University of Syndey, Australia.
Oyinlola, Oluwagbemiga, Tamara Sussman & Anthony Iwuagwu. “Understanding Practices and Support Needs of Family Caregivers of People with Dementia in Africa: A Scoping Review Protocol,” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 5, no.7 (2024): 1103-1110. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2024574
© 2024 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
