Research Article: Dementia Education for Workforce Excellence: Evaluation of a Novel Bichronous Approach
Abstract:
Dementia education and training for workforce development is becoming increasingly important in bridging knowledge gaps among health and social care practitioners in the UK and internationally. Dementia Education for Workforce Excellence (DEWE) was developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, blending both synchronous and asynchronous instruction and delivered across three different contexts: care homes, home care, and nurse education within the UK and India. This study aimed to evaluate DEWE using mixed methods with online survey data analyzed descriptively and interview data analyzed thematically. Integration of survey and interview data aimed toward a comprehensive evaluation of this novel approach for dementia workforce development. Thirty-four social care practitioners and nurse educators completed the online survey demonstrating high-level learner satisfaction, learning gains, behavioral change, and motivation to share new knowledge. Four key themes developed from the analysis of interviews (n = 9) around participants’ pursuit of new knowledge; delivery modes in DEWE; learning gains and impact of DEWE; and adaptations for future program implementation. Findings suggest DEWE is an innovative resource that promotes person- and relationship-centered dementia care across all stages of one’s dementia journey. Cultural adaptations are recommended for international delivery to ensure contextual alignment and maximum impact.
Introduction:
There are concerns internationally around the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of health and social care practitioners who provide care for people living with dementia [1]. Globally, the prevalence of dementia is 55 million with projections indicating an increase to 139 million by 2050 [2,3]. Notably, most of these people, approximately 75%, are anticipated to be concentrated in low- and middle-income countries [4].
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