Program Overview

Dementia Care: Staying Connected and Living Well

Introduction

This course is designed for carers of individuals living with dementia, providing knowledge and advice on connecting with and caring for someone with dementia. Newcastle University, with its expertise in ageing and dementia research, specializes in understanding dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and other types of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.

Why Join the Course?

The course focuses on everyday experiences that are particularly challenging and stressful for carers, such as combining employment with caring for someone living with dementia. It aims to provide strategies and practical steps to improve communication, which is crucial for building and maintaining relationships and effectively negotiating daily life.

Course Overview

Over three weeks, participants will meet other carers and academic experts who have developed strategies to improve communication. The course will cover various topics, including the brain and different types of dementia, challenging situations and behaviors that can cause carer stress, and strategies for improving verbal and non-verbal communication.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, participants will develop a new understanding of:

• The brain and different types of dementia, such as Alzheimer's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB)
• What a person with dementia is experiencing
• Challenging situations and behaviors that can cause carer stress
• Strategies for improving verbal and non-verbal communication

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Describe the different forms of dementia, including the distinctive characteristics of dementia with Lewy bodies
• Explore the communication challenges affecting carers of people with dementia
• Improve strategies for verbal and non-verbal communication between carers and people with dementia
• Explain how to handle challenging situations that can cause carer stress
• Contribute to ideas for innovation and better communication

Course Agenda

The 3-week online course allows participants to follow at their own pace, with asynchronous discussions at various touchpoints throughout the course. Topics covered include:

• Changing understandings of dementia
• Types and symptoms of dementia
• Structure and functions of the brain
• Characteristics of dementia with Lewy bodies
• Ongoing inner life and the concept of personhood
• Understanding communication (channels, modes, and contexts)
• Reflecting on the caring role (experiences, stresses, and self-compassion)
• Understanding Alzheimer's disease and the concept of ‘time shift’
• Understanding the communication challenges of dementia with Lewy bodies
• Reflecting on caring at a distance
• Activities of daily living and dementia (focusing on mealtimes and using the bathroom)
• Understanding challenging behavior
• Identifying unmet need
• Avoiding confrontation
• Exploring assistive technologies to improve communication
• Sharing insights to support future care innovations

Instructor

The course is directed by Lynne Corner, Chief Operating Officer at the UK National Innovation Centre for Ageing (NICA) and a Trustee of the Lewy Body Dementia Society, who has been involved in dementia research and dementia care for the last 20 years and is also a carer. Her passion is to share practical insights that will make a real difference to how we connect and communicate.