Creating a Life Story for Person-Centred Care

To ensure that people living with dementia are treated with respect and supported in managing their symptoms, a person-centred approach to care is vital. Families, carers and the person with dementia themselves should be actively involved in developing a care plan tailored to meet the needs of the individual. It should be formulated from a knowledge of the persons history, life events, culture, hobbies and preferences. Understanding the whole person is so valuable in enabling positive communication & connections, encouraging meaningful activities and ensuring that the focus always remains on what is important to the person.

What is Life Story Work?

Life story work is a tool to enable carers to get to know someone better and therefore provide better person-centred care for them. It is a personal document of key moments from the persons life, a timeline of where they may have lived, worked or travelled and includes information about people who have been and still are important to them.

A life story book can be shared with carers and professionals to support them to deliver person-centred care. It can enable the person living with dementia to maintain their identity and communicate their wishes. Life story work is not only beneficial in care situations but can be a used as a form of therapeutic reminiscence with family members. Conversations around memories and significant life moments can be helpful in strengthening relationships, increasing confidence through self-identity and can bring comfort and reassurance to the person.

It can also be helpful to produce a short one-page summary document which can be shared when necessary (i.e. Hospital stays). There are recognised templates such as the “This is Me” document available to support this exercise.

How to Complete Life Story Work?

This document will be personal and should be completed in whichever way is best suited to the individual.  Some of the options are below:

• A book or journal. This could be handwritten or typed. Photos, cards and tickets can be stuck in. It might be useful to use a scrapbook style book where additional pages can be added. Alternatively, a ring binder can be used with individual sheets either laminated or put in plastic pockets to protect it.  

• A photo album: This could be completed as a traditional album with annotated photos or could be created online and printed out as a photo book. Printing online enables a mix of new digital photos with older ones that can be scanned in.

• A video journal: Some people prefer to verbalise their story. If videoed, it can then be edited to fit to a timeline. There may be old footage that can be added as well as enabling family and friends to record their memories of important moments in the person’s life. Overtime, more footage can be added to keep the life story up to date.

• A Memory box: At later stages of dementia or if the person has sensory challenges, a box filled with items that reflect their life can be helpful as a reminiscence tool.

• Digital records: There are a variety of online resources and apps that can be used to store, sort and save photos and memories. They can be created using a combination of images, video and music. They can also be shared with family and friends who may live further away but wish to contribute.  

  
  

Creating a Life Story can be done at any point in a person’s life, but could become more challenging as the disease progresses. However, it is important to always include the person with dementia to ensure that their voice is heard. Encourage them to recall events and support them to put the information together.  A life story can evolve, it can be completed over many months or even years. It does not need to follow a timeline, instead it could be developed around themes. Some topics might include childhood, working life, travel, life events, places they lived, likes and dislikes, hobbies, family, friendships and pets.

TIPS:

• Ask simple, general questions and give the person time to think.

• Ask family and friends to provide their memories and help to fill any gaps

• Use photos, music and memorabilia to encourage a person to talk about a particular time or event from their past

• Try completing the document as a group or family reminiscence activity. Perhaps discuss and share memories about different topics then record them. This can improve social connections and interactions and increase confidence.

• Be sensitive about what the person shares and be mindful that they may not wish to document everything.

• Some events may trigger unpleasant or sad memories, and the person may be emotional but unable to explain why. Allow them to express themselves and validate their feelings. Try taking breaks or moving onto different topics if necessary.

  
  

Life Story Work is a great way for people with dementia to connect to those involved in their care. As dementia progresses communication can become more difficult, but a life story book can act as a prompt to aid communication, create connections, and enable professionals and paid carers to get to know the person. A National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) study found that Life Story Work not only resulted in positive changes in care staff’s attitude to dementia but also improved the quality of life for people living with dementia.