Effects of online training on knowledge and attitudes towards clients with dementia

Abstract

The prevalence of dementia is escalating and it was estimated that the total number of people with dementia will increase from 524 million in 2010 to almost quadruple of 1.5 billion in 2050 (World Health Organization, 2010). Dementia, particularly Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), therefore required special attention, resources and research. Therefore, health care professionals should be prepared to treat and care for AD patients and support their families in the community. The preparation should begin from the earliest stage of professional health care education, at the undergraduate level. However, with time constraint and the packed content in the existing curriculum, students are required to learn all the issues of dementia in a short period of time and could only develop preliminary understanding of these issues. The use of online learning can overcome some of the logistical difficulties while also encouraging self-directed learning. This study was part of the Interprofessional Online Learning for Dementia (IPOLD), funded by the Teaching Development Grant (TDG) Awards, HKU. The study aimed to develop an online learning platform on the Moodle LMS for nursing students to strengthen their learning about dementia. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Board of the University of Hong Kong and Hospital Authority. Students who enrolled in Gerotological Nursing Course were recruited in the control group and the intervention group. Students in the intervention group could retrieve the teaching materials via Moodle Learning System over a span of 3 months. The outcome of this Online Dementia Training Program was evaluated using both quantitative method and qualitative method. Two validated tools including the Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale (ADKS) (Carpenter et al., 2009) and, the Dementia Attitudes Scale (DAS) (O'Connor and McFadden, 2010) were incorporated in this self-administered questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out using IBM Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 21 (SPSS 21.0). Descriptive statistics, T-test, and linear regression methods were used to determine the effectiveness of the online program. Qualitative method included five focus group interviews. All coding was organized and combined related coding into themes. All the themes were used to explain the findings in this study. Overall, this online dementia training program was a success although there were some contradictory outcomes between the quantitative and qualitative data. The learners in this study enjoyed the program and acquired new knowledge on dementia that they would try to transfer it to their clinical situations. The study can serve as a model for future development of online learning for undergraduate nursing students.