Context: Due to population ageing, dementia is a top health and social challenge across Europe. For an appropriate management of dementia knowledge, skills and collaboration of several professions are needed. This requirement is not met in many countries, and students of relevant occupational disciplines care are not being prepared to perform these tasks. The gaps regarding interprofessional shared learning, mutual understanding and networking can be closed by modern learning methods such as e-learning or online courses, particularly in times of social distancing such as the current COVID-10 pandemic. However, such digital learning methods have not yet been applied to dementia education in southeastern Europe and are not available in local languages. Objectives: On this background, a group of researchers and educators from four universities who have been successfully working together on previous transnational projects in dementia education (Technical University of Munich, Germany; University of Ljubljana, Slovenia; Carol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Bucharest, Romania) and one centre for dementia-related vocational training (Centrum Memory, Bratislava, Slovakia) will join forces to strengthen the digital competence of educators and students in the field of dementia and, by enhancing education, improve dementia care. The aims of STUDICODE are to create, evaluate and implement in regular curricula a digital online course on dementia that simultaneously addresses students of various disciplines which have a key role in dementia care (medicine, psychology, nursing, social work, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy). Activities and methodology: The project is structured in four workpackages (WP). In WP1 (Content production,) educators (professors, assistants) at the partner sites will select from the previously created multi-language pool of materials (texts, videos, charts, images, graphics, quizzes) the contents that are most relevant for the education of students, adapt and complement it as needed. The educators will be supported by specialists in e-learning, medical education, and multimedia design who will act as external advisors. In WP2 (Course building), the selected contents will be assembled into the learning management system used by the institution, thus creating a dementia online course in the local language. Progress of work will be monitored by regular reports to the lead partner and regular consortium meetings. Quality of work will be evaluated by local review sessions involving independent experts and student delegates at the partner sites. Before and after the production of the online course, a self-assessment of digital competence will be carried-out by the educators. In WP3 (Course evaluation), the dementia online course will be completed and evaluated by approximately 50 students from different of fields of study at each partner institution (200 in total). Evaluation will include pre-post self-assessments of digital competence and knowledge tests, standardised questionnaires of usability and acceptance, and back-end monitoring of user behaviour. In WP4 (Dissemination), the dementia online course and the results of the evaluation will be presented to persons responsible for the education and training of professions involved in dementia care (e.g. Deans of Study), representatives of Ministries of Health and Ministries of Education, and other relevant stakeholders including national and international patient organisations with the aim of implementing the course in regular curricula of higher and vocational education. Results, impact and potential long-term benefits: At project termination an online course on dementia will be available in several languages. The course will nicely complement traditional educational formats such as lectures or face-to-face workshops at the partner sites as well as at similar institutions nationwide. It may serve as a template for digital-based education in other fields of healthcare. By participating in the production and evaluation process, educators at each partner institution will increase their competence for creating and using digital media. By contributing to quality monitoring during the production phase and to testing the final product students will improve their skills in assessing digital learning formats and incorporating them into their individual learning practice. The impact of the project will go beyond increasing digital readiness at institutions of higher education and vocational training. It will improve the competence and potential for collaboration of key professions involved in dementia care by providing shared person-centred and holistic concepts and skills already at the pre-graduate stage. In this way the project ultimately aims to contribute to improving the quality of life of people with dementia and their carers in southeastern Europe and to support national dementia plans and strategies.
The aim of STUDICODE is to jointly create, implement and evaluate a digital online course on dementia as a complement of regular curricula at the partner institutions. The course is planned to simultaneously address students of various disciplines which play a key role in dementia care: medicine, psychology, nursing, social work, occupational therapy as well as speech and language therapy. By jointly drafting, developing, implementing and evaluating the course materials, educators at the partners sites are expected to increase their digital teaching skills, exchange best practices across institutions and level-up the institutions' capacities in providing highly-quality online courses that are didactically up-to-date. In their joint learning journey, the STUDICODE educators are supported by external experts from didactics, online teaching and graphics design. Through obtaining feedback on the course materials from external experts and pilot students, the STUDICODE educators are furthermore encouraged to improve the STUDICODE online dementia course.
Due to population ageing, dementia is a top health and social challenge across European countries. Dementia is a chronic and generally progressive health condition which usually affects older adults. Dementia is mostly caused by diseases of the brain such as Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal degenerations. Symptoms include memory loss, planning difficulty, language problems and behavioural change. There is currently no cure for most diseases causing dementia. Treatment should include pharmacological approaches, non-pharmacological interventions and caregiver support. For an appropriate management of dementia, knowledge, skills and collaboration of several professions are needed. This requirement is not met in many countries, and students of relevant occupational disciplines are not being prepared to perform these tasks. The gaps regarding interprofessional shared learning, mutual understanding and networking can be closed by modern learning methods such as e-learning or online courses, particularly in times of social distancing such as the current COVID-19 pandemic. However, such digital learning methods have not yet been applied to dementia education in South-Eastern Europe and are not available in local languages.