Family perceptions of mouth care for assisted living residents with dementia: Implications for care

•Family members of assisted living residents with dementia reported physical, psychosocial, and financial benefits of mouth care.•They reported that AL staffing, policies, and leadership practices influenced mouth care.•They believed that mouth care was a way of ensuring resident health and safety.•Many family members reported collaboration with assisted living staff to achieve mouth care goals for their family members.•All family members agreed that “mouth care is important” and 21.7% reported that their relative had an unmet need for dental care in the last year. Mouth care is an important component of care for persons with dementia in assisted living (AL). However, there is little information about family member knowledge, beliefs, and experiences with resident oral health. Family perceptions and involvement in care may impact oral and systemic health for AL residents. Therefore, semi-structured interviews to assess these domains were conducted with 23 adult family members of AL residents with dementia, from 9 AL communities. Thematic analysis found that families identified (1) the centrality of oral health to well-being; (2) organizational influences on mouth care; (3) mouth care in the context of dementia; and (4) collaboration to facilitate mouth care. Family perspectives can provide useful guidance for collaborative interventions that support oral health and mouth care in AL.