Knowledge & Skills for Caring

Dementia Training Courses

A number of dementia-care training courses are available. Some are aimed at professional carers, e.g. paid workers who work in care homes or provide domiciliary care. These courses are very important, as studies have shown that up to 75 per cent of people living in nursing and residential care homes have Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia.

Some courses aimed at professional carers may also cater for people who provide unpaid care, e.g. a friend or family member.

Carers Centre Courses

Training events for unpaid Carers maybe available through Carers Centres. Course topics may include stress management and coping with challenging behaviour.

Independent Trainers

There are a number of independent professional trainers who provide specialist training courses in various aspects of dementia. There are also generic trainers who offer courses in dementia care. Some will tailor a course to specific needs. Try to obtain references or personal referrals from people who have experienced their training, as not everyone will be able to meet your needs and many generic trainers are not experienced in dementia care. The Alzheimer's Society has a list of Approved Trainers.

Beth Noray is an independent trainer and consultant, in dementia care and all related areas.

For more information see Beth Noray's Consultancy and Training website.

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Dementia UK

Dementia UK Trainingspecialises in the provision of high quality training courses for those who work with older people and people with dementia.

A modular training programme designed by Dementia UK Training in partnership with the DSDC Network and accredited by the Open College Network.
This is a six-month programme which aims to provide learners with an in-depth knowledge and enhance their skills in providing care for people with dementia and their carers.

Please click on Accredited Programme for a full list of certificated programmes available.

For further information you can send an email to: training@dementiauk.org.

SPECAL

SPECAL (Specialized Early Care for Alzheimer's) is a person-centred dementia care charity undertaking ground-breaking work with older people who have dementia of the Alzheimer's type.

SPECAL helps clients to live contentedly by associating their long-term memories with their current experience.

SPECAL also works with the carers, families and friends of people who have dementia, and professionals working in the field of dementia who have an interest in the SPECAL approach.

SPECAL services include:

Introductory Service

Advice and information about the SPECAL Photograph Album© and its implications for care planning.

Support for people who have been recently diagnosed

Presentation of the SPECAL Photograph Album© tailored to be accessible to a person in the relatively early stages of Alzheimer's who may wish to explore their prognosis beyond the medical implications.

Training

Workshops for individuals and small groups to discuss principles of the SPECAL care programme and to resolve practical problems relating to caring.

Outreach

Help in preserving the relationship between the person with dementia and key family members which is crucial to the lifelong preservation of personhood and the reduction of carer guilt. Therapeutic Visits are made to the person with dementia and carer together.

Friday Group Flagship Service

A controlled environment in which SPECAL care principles are operating on a moment-by-moment, practical basis, under the guidance of skilled practitioners. Friday Group members include people at all stages of dementia, from very early, to very late.

Major Transitional Care

Providing the support needed in order to move from the family home into a formal care setting using a programme of SPECAL care. The aim is to minimise the stress of the transition for the person with dementia, and to ease the sense of guilt felt by the family if not offered specialized support.

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