Dementia education is key to providing quality care

Despite the fact that it’s predicted around two-thirds of people living in aged care in Australia have dementia, and it was a recommendation of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety for aged care workers to have dementia training, aged care training currently does not involve a compulsory dementia education element.

So why is it important that your workforce has some training in dementia awareness and care? 

Well, people with dementia often need different care to other older people and aged care workers need to understand this difference in order to provide quality care.

HammondCare Head of Learning, Juliet Kelly, who has 30 years of experience in dementia care management, says that most aged care workers already care for a person living with dementia daily.

“It is a complex condition, experienced uniquely by each person, that requires carers’ understanding, knowledge and skill,” she said.

Ms Kelly believes that the knowledge and skills needed to provide quality care and to support people to maintain quality of life while living with dementia is multifaceted and takes time, energy, and commitment.

She feels quality dementia care “deserves to be valued by our society and to be adequately rewarded”, and says this is why it is important for leaders to ensure their aged care workers have dementia training.

“Skilled care is vital to ensuring the person with dementia continues to live and flourish throughout their life,” Ms Kelly adds.

“Unskilled care can have devastating effects for the person, their family, and
friends and indeed for the staff team.”

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, the number of Australians with dementia will double by 2058.

Due to the prevalence of dementia in aged care, Dr Kathleen Doherty, Senior Lecturer at Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre in Tasmania and Course Coordinator for the Masters of Dementia, said dementia understanding is a “really crucial area of expertise to build” for those in the sector.

She says workers know they need dementia training to be able to deliver the care that clients or residents need, but workers need to be supported by their employers to undertake the training.

“We’re looking at a very high proportion of people accessing these services needing this kind of training and [workers] are taking it on by themselves, they’re doing it in their own time, because they need this,” said Dr Doherty.

“Whenever we actually talk to people who are working in the sector they say this is the training they need because they want to deliver the best possible care so they’re seeking ways to do that.”

The need for care workers to have an understanding of dementia not only applies in residential facilities, but also in home care, as around 65% of Australians living with dementia reside in the community.

Dr Doherty says knowledge of dementia across the aged care sector is lacking and could be leading to care that doesn’t meet the needs of people with dementia.

“Some of the studies we’ve done in the past show the actual basic knowledge people have around dementia is relatively poor, even for people who’ve worked in the sector for a long time,” she says.

“Things such as dementia being a terminal condition, a large proportion of people don’t understand that that’s the case.

“If people have a basic education and understanding then their ability to do their work well is really improved.”

What should you look for in a dementia training program?

Training for workers around dementia education comes in many different shapes and sizes.

The duration of courses ranges from ten minutes to several years, and the way this training is delivered also differs – from online modules to entire Masters degrees.

The Wicking Dementia Research and Education Centre offers some free basic courses as a means of engaging workers who want to learn more but don’t necessarily have the funds to do a more intensive course. 

However, there are many other options also available through the Centre and other organisations such as Dementia Australia, Dementia Support Australia, and Dementia Training Australia.

While it may be impractical to expect all aged care workers to complete a degree in dementia care, there are several factors any workforce training on dementia care should include.

Dr Doherty recommends looking for a number of learnings that should be covered in education about dementia, such as: 

• What dementia is and who it affects
• The importance of recognising the rights of a person with dementia and how to uphold those, including activities that could improve quality of life
• How to communicate, connect and maintain connection with a person with dementia
• The importance of involving people with dementia in decisions about their own care
• The role that families members play in support
• Learning around palliative care
• Responding to changes in behaviour and understanding changes in behaviour are to be expected
• Recognising pain and how it might manifest differently
• How to change an environment to support a person

Coverage of these areas would provide a good understanding of dementia to your aged care workforce and lead to better outcomes for people living with dementia.

Selecting a training program

Before selecting a training course for workers, managers can undertake an assessment of the level of knowledge held by staff already, through assessment programs such as those offered by the Wicking Centre.

These assessments may help to find out where the gaps are and provide an idea of a course to select based on these gaps. 

Or a training course can be selected based on the delivery method, length of time needed and how it will suit your workers.

“People need the time, the space and sometimes the resources to be able to engage with training,” Dr Doherty explains.

She adds that it is important to have an idea of how a training course will improve the care delivered by staff.

“[It’s about] keeping an eye on meeting the requirements of person centred care and delivering the care that the consumers themselves need. Having a care workforce that’s responsive and centring it on delivering a best equipped care workforce can actually recognise and respond to the needs of the people they work with,” says Dr Doherty.

At HammondCare the focus of training around dementia includes “formal” learning as well as the opportunity to put theory into practice with the support of workplace trainers, coaches and mentors who are experienced in dementia care.

“Relationship-based care must be the primary focus and the foundation of all training,” Ms Kelly says.

This is why she believes training should be provided by people that have experience in quality care delivery as well as coherent, current and contextualised for aged care workers undertaking the training.

It should also be suited to the learning styles and situations of those doing the training and be evidence-based and focused on current best practice.

“Training that omits to focus on the person with dementia will limit learning and skill development and, ultimately, care outcomes,” Ms Kelly adds.

To find a training program that meets the needs of your organisation, ask about the experience and qualifications of the trainers, how the program has been developed and how it is delivered.

Talk to the training provider about the needs of staff undergoing the training, as well as what outcomes they – and your organisation – want to achieve from the training.