Identifying, understanding and addressing socio-economic inequalities in the quality and safety of primary care for people with dementia (360G-Wellcome-316580_Z_24_Z)

Background: There is evidence of socio-economic inequality in primary care for people with dementia, but this is not fully understood. There has been little qualitative work focusing on the experiences of people with dementia from deprived populations. Aim: To identify, understand and target socio-economic variations in the quality and safety of post-diagnosis primary care and outcomes for people with dementia. Methods: Three linked work packages based on a Systems Thinking theoretical framework: 1\. A retrospective cohort study within the Clinical Practice Research Datalink examining how care processes and outcomes for people with dementia vary with socio-economic inequality. Variation will be examined by Index of Multiple Deprivation quintile. 2\. Qualitative interviews purposively sampling people with dementia and their carers from areas of greater socio-economic deprivation. Semi-structured qualitative interviews will be conducted, analysed with thematic analysis. 3\. Qualitative workshops using Systems Thinking methodology including 10-12 people with dementia, carers and primary healthcare workers will be conducted. Impact: This work will provide evidence of variation with socio-economic status for existing primary care for people with dementia. The work will provide understanding of how people with dementia from deprived populations experience primary care as currently delivered and how current systems could be strengthened.