MATERNAL THINKING IN DEMENTIA CARE

Carers of demented people living in a group dwelling were interviewed and observed individually and together, The aim of the study was to il luminate the thinking of pre-identified good dementia carers and to ma ke explicit their means of understanding demented people. The tape-rec orded and transcribed interviews were interpreted using a phenomenolog ical hermeneutic method, The findings showed that these carers explici tly referred to the concept of mother, used when explaining their abil ity to understand demented people. They created a home-like atmosphere together with the inhabitants, The findings were interpreted metaphor ically as maternal love, thinking and practice in creating an understa nding relationship with the demented people they cared for. This metap horical aptitude considered the fulfilment of life for these demented people and included partly unconscious tools that the carers used to c ompensate for the loss of abilities suffered by the demented people, T he carers' attitudes towards the inhabitants of the ward and each othe r were based on respect as in a functioning family. Their ambition was interpreted as an attempt to create an atmosphere that functioned not only as an institution, but as an incubator for human lives, which ha d become dependent on others for their survival and the preservation o f their human dignity throughout their physical existence.