{ Dementia Care: A Comprehensive Exploration of Certified Nursing Assistant Training

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

Definitions  Certified 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