The focus is on the person with dementia

German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE)

The German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) is part of the Helmholtz Association and has a total of nine sites across Germany.

The Witten site is the only one that conducts research exclusively in the field of healthcare research, with a focus on issues relating to nursing science.

An interdisciplinary team is dedicated to exploring various strategies for the care of people with dementia; participants include experts from the fields of nursing and health sciences, the social sciences, gerontology and psychology.

Research aimed at improving the quality of care

The DZNE covers a wide range of basic research, clinical research, population studies and health services research. In Witten, the focus is always on the person with dementia (and their social environment). Research centres on their behaviour, quality of life and social inclusion.

Institutionally, the work is organised into four working groups:

• Care interventions: measures to improve healthcare provision,
• Healthcare Structures: Organisation and infrastructure of the healthcare system,
• Healthcare research methods: techniques for investigating healthcare provision,
• Implementation and dissemination research: research into the application and dissemination of new healthcare measures.

Through its research areas, the DZNE Witten makes an important contribution to the international scientific canon. To facilitate exchange and pan-European collaboration, the DZNE Witten is part of the European networks InterDem (Early detection and timely INTervention in DEMentia) and EANS (The European Academy of Nursing Science). There are also close links with the College of Nursing at Penn State University, USA, and the School of Dementia Studies at the University of Bradford, UK.

A detailed overview of the site’s research projects can be found on the DZNE website in the respective annual reports.