Time for Dementia

A multi-stakeholder collaboration between teaching colleagues, undergraduate healthcare students, families living with dementia, researchers, administrators, Alzheimer’s Society and other universities, the education programme provides longitudinal contact with a person living with dementia and their family carer.  Undergraduate students are paired with a family and visit six times over the course of two years, where they get to know each other, share experiences about their everyday lives and the impact of living with dementia. This provides the student with invaluable insight into the life of a person living with dementia as well as the experiences of their carers, and the challenges they face.

Phase one of the evaluation (2015-2018) found positive changes in knowledge and attitudes to dementia, with statistically significant improvements in both dementia knowledge and attitudes in the Time for Dementia intervention group compared to the control group.

Funded by Health Education England South East (HEESE, phase two of the evaluation will be completed in 2022 with pre/post mixed methods design in which students and family carers are assessed before and after completing the programme. Additionally, newly qualified students will be followed up into practice. Students enrolled into both phases of the study will be assessed on their knowledge and attitudes towards the condition.