Background: In 2010, China had an elderly population of 1.78 billion people. As in other societies around the world, China is facing a growing challenge in providing care for its elderly citizens. Ensuring the highest quality of care for elderly patients, many of whom have senile dementia, is directly related to the performance of nursing assistants.
Methods: With the goal of investigating the knowledge, attitudes, and skills of nursing assistants who care for senile dementia patients in nursing homes in Xi'an, China, we distributed a survey and analyzed the responses.
Results: Nursing assistants showed dedication and sincerity in their care for senile dementia patients. However, their performances in the categories of life nursing and mental nursing reveal room for improvement. Further, the nursing assistants did not display adequate knowledge about senile dementia. Based on survey results, the knowledge of the nursing assistants concerning nursing safety was comparatively adequate.
Conclusion: Nursing assistants who care for senile dementia patients in nursing homes in Xi'an, China, require further training that expands their knowledge and increases their capabilities. We recommend that nursing homes in Xi'an offer a standardized professional nurse/nurse assistant training course that focuses on care for elderly patients with senile dementia.
Keywords: Dementia; health knowledge–attitudes–practice; nursing; nursing home.