Feasibility and Utility of Online Dementia Care Training for Hospital Staff: The CARES ® Dementia-Friendly Hospital™ Program

<p>The current project tested the feasibility and utility of the CARES ® Dementia-Friendly Hospital™ (CDFH) program, a 4-module, online training program for nursing assistants (NAs) and allied hospital workers (AHWs) who provide care to individuals with dementia. A single group pretest/posttest design was used for 25 hospital NAs/AHWs, and quantitative and qualitati ve data were collected to determine whether NAs'/AHWs' knowledge of hospital-based dementia care significantly increased, and if CDFH was perceived as useful and acceptable. Dementia care knowledge increased significantly (<i>p</i>< 0.001). Open- and closed-ended data suggested that the delivery of online training to NAs/AHWs to enhance dementia care is feasible, useful, and efficient. Ongoing gaps in care exist for individuals with dementia in hospitals, and delivering robust training for NAs/AHWs may serve as an effective modality to enhance quality of dementia care in such settings.</p><p><b>[Res Gerontol Nurs. 2017; 10(2):58 –65.]</b></p>
Source: Research in gerontological nursing - Category: Geriatrics Source Type: research