Effect of a dementia friends information session on health professional students’ attitudes and knowledge related to dementia

Abstract

Despite the growing prevalence of dementia, few models of training for health professional students on this topic have been formally evaluated or widely disseminated. The Dementia Friends (DF) initiative is part of a global movement to improve the way people think, act, and talk about dementia. The impact of these sessions on the dementia-related knowledge and attitudes of health professional trainees has not been adequately assessed. Health professional students (medicine n = 70, physical therapy n = 30, pharmacy n = 28) participated in one-hour DF information sessions, offered in-person or via videoconference. The Dementia Attitudes Scale (DAS), a validated 20-item questionnaire, was administered before and after each session. Pre- and post-session DAS scores were compared using a paired t-test. Students’ dementia-friendly action plans were analyzed qualitatively. Of 128 students, 102 (80%) completed both the pre- and post-DAS. The mean DAS score increased significantly from 105.8 (12.3) to 120.8 (10.5) following the DF sessions (p < .001). Students’ dementia-friendly action plans included improving communication, promoting quality of life, and learning more about dementia. The DF information session model significantly increased the knowledge and positive attitudes of health professional students toward those living with dementia. Further use and study of this model is appropriate.

KEYWORDS:

• Dementia education
• dementia friends
• healthcare education

Acknowledgment

We thank James Pacala, MD, MS and Anne Marie Weber-Main, PhD for helpful discussions and critical review of our manuscript. We thank Colleen Fritsch for her invaluable guidance on conducting the Dementia Friends sessions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Authors’ contributions

Study concept by TM, ER, MB, AP. Data acquired by MB, AP, LP. Analysis and verification of data by KT. MB, AP drafted the manuscript. All authors participated in interpretation of results and revision of manuscript.

Impact statement

We certify that this work is novel. As the prevalence of dementia increases worldwide, effective and efficient models of dementia education for health professional training are needed. Dementia Friends (DF) is part of a global movement to increase awareness of and reduce stigma associated with cognitive decline. The one-hour DF information session model described is freely available, standardized, and easily scaled. Using the validated Dementia Attitudes Scale (DAS) questionnaire, we found that the DF information sessions significantly increased knowledge and positive attitudes related to dementia among various types of health professional students.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/02701960.2022.2123319.

Additional information

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the following: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources & Service Administration to the Minnesota Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program, Grant ID [CON000000078670]; NIH grant [P30 CA77598] utilizing the Biostatistics Core shared resource of the Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota; National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health Award Number [UL1TR002494]. In-kind support was also provided by the Minneapolis Veteran Administration Health System Geriatrics Research Education Clinic Center. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health, the VA, or the United States Government.