NON-PHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW CONTEXTUALISED TO HEALTHCARE BUILDINGS IN IBADAN CITY, NIGERIA.

Authors

  • Emmanuel O. Odugboye Department of Architecture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria Author
  • Omobude F. Ighodalo Department of Architecture, University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.60787/jnamp.vol73no.732

Keywords:

Non-pharmacological interventions, Dementia, Pain, Behavioural and psychological symptoms, Indoor environmental quality

Abstract

Background: Pain and the behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD) are common but undertreated, and pharmacological management risks sedation, falls, and interactions.

Objectives: This review synthesises evidence on non-pharmacological interventions for people with dementia and contextualises it to healthcare buildings in Ibadan, Nigeria, using two contrasting facilities (private HC1, government HC2).

Methods: The synthesis builds on Liao et al. (2021)—11 studies, 486 participants— integrated with the author’s mixed-methods fieldwork in HC1 and HC2.

Results: Person-centred, preference-based, and environmentally mediated interventions were the most consistent performers, converging with fieldwork in which excessive noise, heat, and poor lighting were associated with agitation and wandering. Most studies were small, low-to-mixed quality, and rarely replicated.

Conclusion: Environmental interventions are safe, low-cost, and applicable across dementia stages, but the evidence is thin and skewed toward high-income temperate settings; tropical, lowresource contexts remain almost absent.

         Views | Downloads: 19 / 8

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Liao, Y.-J., Parajuli, J., Jao, Y.-L., Kitko, L., & Berish, D. (2021). Non-pharmacological interventions for pain in people with dementia: A systematic review. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 124, 104082. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2021.104082

Prince, M., Wimo, A., Guerchet, M., Ali, G.-C., Wu, Y.-T., & Prina, M. (2015). World Alzheimer report 2015—The global impact of dementia: An analysis of prevalence, incidence, cost and trends. Alzheimer’s Disease International.

Adeloye, D., Auta, A., Ezejimofor, M., Oyedokun, A., Harhay, M. O., Rudan, I., & Chan, K. Y. (2022). Prevalence of dementia in Nigeria: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Global Health, 12, 04014. https://doi.org/10.7189/jogh.12.04014

Ogunniyi, A., Kalaria, R. N., & Baiyewu, O. (2021). Dementia in sub-Saharan Africa: Challenges and opportunities. The Lancet Neurology, 20(6), 415–417. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-4422(21)00107-X

Baiyewu, O., Bella, A. F., Adeyemi, J. D., Bamgboye, E. A., & Jegede, R. O. (1997). Psychiatric disorders in Nigerian nursing home residents. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 12(12), 1146–1150. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-1166(199712)12:12<1146::AID-GPS705>3.0.CO;2-9

Corbett, A., Husebo, B., Malcangio, M., Staniland, A., Cohen-Mansfield, J., Aarsland, D., & Ballard, C. (2012). Assessment and treatment of pain in people with dementia. Nature Reviews Neurology, 8(5), 264– 274. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneurol.2012.53

Husebo, B. S., Ballard, C., Sandvik, R., Nilsen, O. B., & Aarsland, D. (2011). Efficacy of treating pain to reduce behavioural disturbances in residents of nursing homes with dementia: Cluster randomised clinical trial. BMJ, 343, d4065. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.d4065

Achterberg, W., Lautenbacher, S., Husebo, B., Erdal, A., & Herr, K. (2020). Pain in dementia. Pain Reports, 5(1), e803. https://doi.org/10.1097/PR9.0000000000000803

Ulrich, R. S. (1984). View through a window may influence recovery from surgery. Science, 224(4647), 420–421. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.6143402

Ulrich, R. S. (1991). Effects of interior design on wellness: Theory and recent scientific research. Journal of Health Care Interior Design, 3(1), 97–109.

Fleming, R., Zeisel, J., & Bennett, K. (2020). World Alzheimer report 2020: Design, dignity, dementia—Dementia-related design and the built environment. Alzheimer’s Disease International.

Odugboye, E. O. (2025). Environmental impacts on frailty and dementia care: A case study of two healthcare facilities in Ibadan, Nigeria [Unpublished doctoral dissertation]. Newcastle University, United Kingdom.

Cho, E., Lee, J. Y., Yang, M., Jang, J., Cho, J., & Kim, M. J. (2024). Symptom-specific nonpharmacological interventions for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia: An umbrella review. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 159, 104866.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2024.104866

Jesto, S., Bloomer, M. J., & Hutchinson, A. M. (2024). Non-pharmacological nursing interventions for behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia in acute and subacute settings: A systematic review. International Journal of Nursing Practice, 30(2), e13213. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijn.13213

Saito, T., Shimizu, N., & Yao, L. (2025). Effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions for older adults with dementia: An umbrella review. Aging and Health Research. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ahr.2025.100813

Ackley, A., Pieres, G., Baldeh, R., & Donn, M. (2024). Indoor environmental quality (IEQ) in healthcare facilities: A systematic literature review and gap analysis. Building and Environment, 259, 111635. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.buildenv.2024.111635

Manca, S., Rebecchi, A., & Capolongo, S. (2023). Indoor environmental quality and well-being in healthcare facilities: A narrative review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(4), 3080. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043080

Cipher, D. J., Clifford, P. A., & Roper, K. D. (2007). The effectiveness of geropsychological treatment in improving pain, depression, behavioral disturbances, functional disability, and health care utilization in long-term care. Clinical Gerontologist, 30(3), 23–40. https://doi.org/10.1300/J018v30n03_02

Ellis, J. M., Wells, Y., & Ong, J. S. M. (2019). Non-pharmacological approaches to pain management in residential aged care: A pre-post-test study. Clinical Gerontologist, 42(3), 286–296. https://doi.org/10.1080/07317115.2017.1399189

Hodgson, N. A., & Andersen, S. (2008). The clinical efficacy of reflexology in nursing home residents with dementia. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, 14(3), 269–275. https://doi.org/10.1089/acm.2007.0577

Kapoor, Y., & Orr, R. (2017). Effect of therapeutic massage on pain in patients with dementia. Dementia, 16(1), 119–125. https://doi.org/10.1177/1471301215583391

Maltais, M., Rolland, Y., Vellas, B., Haÿ, P.-E., Armaingaud, D., Cestac, P., Rouch, L., Cesari, M., & de Souto Barreto, P. (2018). Effect of exercise on behavioral symptoms and pain in patients with dementia living in nursing homes. American Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease & Other Dementias, 33(1), 8–13. https://doi.org/10.1177/1533317517744756

Park, H. (2010). Effect of music on pain for home-dwelling persons with dementia. Pain Management Nursing, 11(3), 141–147. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmn.2009.05.004 24. Park, H., Chun, Y., & Gang, M. S. (2015). Effects of the patient-centered environment program on behavioral and emotional problems in home-dwelling patients with dementia. Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 41(12), 40–48. https://doi.org/10.3928/00989134-20151111-02

Pongan, E., Tillmann, B., Leveque, Y., Trombert, B., Getenet, J. C., Auguste, N., Dauphinot, V., El Haouari, H., Navez, M., Dorey, J.-M., Krolak-Salmon, P., Laurent, B., & Rouch, I. (2017). Can musical or painting interventions improve chronic pain, mood, quality of life, and cognition in patients with mild Alzheimer’s disease? Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, 60(2), 663–677. https://doi.org/10.3233/JAD170410

Pu, L., Moyle, W., Jones, C., & Todorovic, M. (2020). The effect of using PARO for people living with dementia and chronic pain: A pilot randomized controlled trial. Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 21(8), 1079–1085. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jamda.2020.01.014

Rodríguez-Mansilla, J., González López-Arza, M. V., Varela-Donoso, E., Montanero-Fernández, J., González Sánchez, B., & Garrido-Ardila, E. M. (2015). The effects of ear acupressure, massage therapy and no therapy on symptoms of dementia: A randomized controlled trial. Clinical Rehabilitation, 29(7), 683–693. https://doi.org/10.1177/0269215514554240

Tse, M. M. Y., Lau, J. L., Kwan, R., Cheung, D., Tang, A. S. K., Ng, S. S. M., Lee, P. H., & Yeung, S. S. Y. (2018). Effects of play activities program for nursing home residents with dementia on pain and psychological well-being: Cluster randomized controlled trial. Geriatrics & Gerontology International, 18(10), 1485–1490. https://doi.org/10.1111/ggi.13509

Downloads

Published

2026-08-18

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

NON-PHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS FOR PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW CONTEXTUALISED TO HEALTHCARE BUILDINGS IN IBADAN CITY, NIGERIA. (2026). The Journals of the Nigerian Association of Mathematical Physics, 73, 123-132. https://doi.org/10.60787/jnamp.vol73no.732

Share

Similar Articles

1-10 of 27

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.