Towards Holistic Dementia Care: Introducing the Well-being in Dementia Inventory (WiDI)
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Barbirolli Room |
Dr Allan Perry
Consultant Neuropsychologist & Director of Clinical Service
PJ Care
Summary
While well-being in dementia care is receiving increasing attention, approaches often prioritise symptom reduction or momentary positive affect, with less focus on deeper, meaning-based dimensions such as purpose, autonomy, and identity. This presentation introduces the Well-being in Dementia Inventory (WiDI), a validated measure developed to assess six key dimensions of meaning-based well-being in individuals with dementia across residential and community settings. Drawing on data from two large caregiver-reported samples, the WiDI demonstrated strong reliability, a stable six-factor structure, and strong correlations with established well-being measures. It performed consistently across age groups, genders, and care contexts, supporting its broad applicability. The WiDI offers a practical, person-centred approach for use in research, care planning, and service evaluation. This session will outline its development, validation, and implications for embedding meaning-oriented assessment into dementia care practice and policy.