An audit of dementia education and training in UK health and social care: a comparison with national benchmark standards

Abstract

Background Despite people living with dementia representing a significant proportion of health and social care users, until recently in the United Kingdom (UK) there were no prescribed standards for dementia education and training. This audit sought to review the extent and nature of dementia education and training offered to health and social care staff in the UK against the standards described in the 2015 Dementia Training Standards Framework, which describes the knowledge and skills required of the UK dementia workforce. Methods This audit presents national data concerning the design, delivery, target audience, length, level, content, format of training, number of staff trained and frequency of delivery within existing dementia training programmes offered to health and social care staff. The Dementia Training Standards Framework was used as a reference for respondents to describe the subjects and learning outcomes associated with their training. Results The findings are presented from 614 respondents offering 386 training packages, which indicated variations in the extent and quality of training. Many training packages addressed the subjects of ‘person-centred care’, ‘communication’, ‘interaction and behaviour in dementia care’, and ‘dementia awareness’. Few training packages addressed subjects concerning ‘pharmacological interventions in dementia care’, ‘leadership’ and ‘end of life care’. Fewer than 40% of The Dementia Training Standards Framework learning outcomes targeted to staff with regular contact with people with dementia or in leadership roles were covered by the reported packages. However, for training targeted at increasing dementia awareness more than 70% of the learning outcomes identified in The Dementia Training Standards Framework were addressed. Many training packages are not of sufficient duration to derive impact; although the majority employed delivery methods likely to be effective. Conclusions The development of new and existing training and education should take account of subjects that are currently underrepresented and ensure that training reflects the Training Standard Framework and evidence regarding best practice for delivery. Lessons regarding the limitations of training in the UK serve as a useful illustration of the challenge of implementing national dementia training standards; particularly for countries who are developing or have recently implemented national dementia strategies.

Impact of dementia education and training on health and social care staff knowledge, attitudes and confidence: a cross-sectional study

“…Smith et al 22 report that approximately 70% of dementia education and training programmes meet only the tier 1 learning outcomes as set out by Dementia Core Skills Framework, 9 and less than 40% met the requirements for tier 2 and tier 3. The findings from the current study suggest that tier 2 and tier 3 training is required to develop a dementia care workforce that fosters positive attitudes and is confident in providing high-quality dementia care.…”

Barriers and Facilitators to Implementing a Longitudinal Dementia Education Programme into Undergraduate Healthcare Curricula: A Qualitative Study.

“…Educational initiatives provided at undergraduate level could enhance student knowledge and attitudes towards dementia, however there is a lack of evidence and policy direction about the necessary type of dementia education required (16)(17)(18). Traditionally, undergraduate education has been delivered through a series of acute placements and lecture-based learning.…”

The barriers and facilitators to implementing dementia education and training in health and social care services: a mixed-methods study

“…The research took place in a range of health and social care provider organisations in the UK, who were delivering dementia care. These included acute hospitals, Mental Health Trusts, social care services (care homes), and [16][17][18][19] and an overview is presented below.…”

“…study aimed to investigate the components of effective dementia training and education, and the barriers and facilitators to its implementation. This was achieved through a systematic literature review [3], a national audit of 386 dementia training programmes in the UK [16], a survey of staff who had completed dementia training and ten organisational mixed-methods case studies in acute hospitals (n = 3) [17], mental health Trusts (n = 3), care homes (n = 3) [18], and primary care (n = 1) [19].…”