Tom Kitwood on Dementia: A Reader and Critical Commentary

"The book will be valuable for undergraduate and postgraduate students, researchers and lecturers involved in the field of dementia care and the health-care sciences. Furthermore, it provides a useful resource for clinicians who wish to explore their understanding of 'personhood', person-centred care and the nature of Kitwood's critical appraisal of how 'care' should be constructed and delivered."
Ageing and Society

"Baldwin and Capstick have produced an honest appraisal that is undeniably a reader and critical commentary, and have not shirked from any responsibilities. ... This paperback would serve two distinct strands of readership equally well - those coming afresh to dementia care, or practitioners steeped in the concepts, who are looking to reanalyse and consider future developments. As such, it is difficult to underestimate its value."
Nursing in Practice

• How does Kitwood’s work contribute to our understanding of ‘the dementing process’ and the essentials of quality care?
• How was Kitwood’s thinking about dementia influenced by the wider context of his work in theology, psychology and biochemistry?
• What is the relevance today of key themes and issues in Kitwood’s work?

Tom Kitwood was one of the most influential writers on dementia of the last 20 years. Key concepts and approaches from his work on person-centred care and well-being in dementia have gained international recognition and shaped much current thinking about practice development. The complexities of Kitwood’s work and the development of his thinking over time have, however, received less attention. This Reader brings together twenty original publications by Kitwood which span the entire period of his writing on dementia, and the different audiences for whom he wrote.

Almost ten years after Kitwood’s death, it is now timely to review his contribution to the field of dementia studies in the light of more recent developments and from a critical and interdisciplinary perspective. The introduction to this Reader summarises and problematises some of the key characteristics of Kitwood’s writing. Each of the four themed sections begins with a commentary offering a balanced consideration of the strengths of Kitwood’s work, but also of its limitations and oversights. The Reader also includes a biography and annotated bibliography.

Tom Kitwood on Dementia: A Reader and Critical Commentary is key reading for students of social work or mental health nursing, with an interest in dementia care. Professionals working with people with dementia will also find it invaluable.

Additional Contributors: Habib Chaudhury, Deborah O’Connor, Alison Phinney, Barbara Purves, Ruth Bartlett.