significant others

Worldwide 46.8 million persons are living with dementia and many are requiring assistance with performing daily living or instrumental functions. It is often the task of family members to provide care for their relatives with dementia. However, they are often the silent, unseen and unacknowledged figures in the lives of people living with dementia.

[...]I would like to revise his statement slightly, to read: ‘We acknowledge that family and significant others can play a significant role in the process of decision making in some patients from non‐Western or Western cultural backgrounds more or less.’ [my emphasis]. [...]we equally know that doctors do not fulfil the obligation of medical information provision from the perspective of Chinese patients.

Significant others are often crucial for suicidal persons or suicide attempters’ access to care, yet little is known about their efforts to seek help. This article presents the findings of a qualitative pilot study carried out in Switzerland on the help-seeking process of 18 significant others, their perception of the care received by their loved one, and the interactions and collaboration they experienced with professionals. Most significant others repeatedly sought out support for their loved one and themselves.