Background Research indicates that there isn’t proper care given to those
dementia patients living in long-term care facilities
Dementia is the most common diagnosis in nursing home populations
Nearly 90 percent of dementia sufferers will have at least one nursing home stay in their lifetime
Experts believe that nearly 4 million people in the United States are currently living with the disease
360,000 Americans are diagnosed each year
50,000 people are reported to die with the disease each year
DefinitionsCertified Nursing Assistant: A certified nursing
assistant, or CNA, helps patients or clients with healthcare needs under the supervision of a Registered Nurse (RN) or a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN).
Dementia Special Care Unit: Dementia Special Care Units (SCUs) exist to better meet dementia residents' needs and to protect residents without dementia in nursing homes and residential care facilities.
Purpose Why?
Currently there is a lack of training and preparation given to certified nursing assistants in caring for older adults with dementia
In order to draw awareness to the lack of training further investigation of the current training needs to be considered
The CNA’s basic training includes competencies dealing with older adults who have dementia, but the training is not extensive
Research Questions What special care is given for dementia patients?
Do CNA’s receive adequate training to care for those patients with dementia?
Why is the current dementia training proving to be unsuccessful?
What improvements need to be made to the current training procedures for CNA’s in relation to caring for dementia patients?
Hypothesis There is a gap in what is expected from the residents and
families and what care the residents are actually receiving
The current training offered is inconsistent and ineffective
Current Dementia Training Vary depending on the state
Focusing on Indiana
In 2003 Indiana proclaimed the requirement of dementia-specific training in all facilities that had contact with dementia residents
In addition to the required in-service hours, staff shall have a minimum of six hours of dementia-specific training within six months and three hours annually thereafter
Alzheimer’s Association partnered with the Indiana State Health Department to develop training modules
There is no consistency between methods of delivery between facilities
Training (cont) The Alzheimer’s Association and the State Health Department
had visions but they have seemed to have failed
In result, CNAs aren’t receiving the needed theoretical knowledge because facilities are failing to offer adequate training
State regulated training
requirements
Alzheimer’s Association partnership
Idealistically: Facilities use what is provided
Facility Director’s discretion
Inadequate training
provided
Methods Qualitative Study
Systematic Approach evaluating the current dementia training approaches
Focus specifically on the facilities with Dementia SCU’s
Methods (cont) Interview 6 different facilities
Survey format
Executive director, Director of Nursing, and CNAs Important to get perceptions from all
Each facility will have 20 or more surveys completed
Combine common themes
Compare types of training administered and the effectiveness the CNA’s believe them to be
CNA’s perceptions of their ability to care for dementia patients vs. The training they are being offered
Significance to the field
Make state officials aware of the inconsistences
Ultimately require the same training procedures (i.e. materials, educators) across the state
Limitations Exaggerated training procedures given by the facility director
or director of nursing
Biases from the researcher