Dementia Champions: enhanced care practice

Designed for health and social care professionals, this course develops the knowledge, skills and leadership capability to deliver high-quality, person-centred dementia care while supporting you to become a Dementia Champion through Scotland's internationally recognised education programme.

Participants will strengthen their ability to respond to the complex challenges of dementia care by applying evidence-informed, ethical and rights-based approaches across health and social care settings. The course focuses on improving outcomes for people living with dementia, supporting family carers, leading fundamental care delivery and promoting high standards of professional practice within multidisciplinary teams.

To view the module descriptor (NURS10044), please visit Programme Specifications and Module Descriptors.

 

Why take this course?

As the number of people living with dementia continues to grow, health and social care professionals are supporting individuals and families with increasingly complex needs. Organisations require a workforce that can deliver compassionate, evidence-informed care while responding to ethical challenges, reducing stigma and working effectively across multidisciplinary teams.

This course supports you to strengthen your professional practice by developing the knowledge, judgement and leadership capability needed to improve dementia care. Through a focus on person-centred, rights-based and evidence-informed approaches, you will be better equipped to enhance care quality, support family carers, contribute to service improvement and help achieve better outcomes for people living with dementia across a range of health and social care settings.

 

What you will learn

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

• Apply contemporary knowledge, values and professional principles to deliver high-quality dementia care across health and social care settings
• Analyse complex situations in dementia care and use evidence-based, ethical approaches to improve outcomes for people living with dementia
• Lead and support person-centred care that recognises the needs and experiences of both people living with dementia and their family carers
• Evaluate how professional standards, reflective practice and continuous development contribute to maintaining and improving the quality of dementia care
• Strengthen your ability to work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams to enhance professional practice and service delivery

 

How you will learn

This course is delivered online over 12 weeks, providing the flexibility to study alongside your professional and personal commitments. Learning is supported through a blend of scheduled online teaching, guided tutorials, independent study and digital learning resources available through the University's virtual learning environment.

The course comprises approximately 200 hours of learning, including 36 hours of tutor-supported learning, 24 hours of guided asynchronous learning activities and around 130 hours of independent study. Throughout the course, you will engage with current evidence, reflect on professional practice and apply your learning to realistic dementia care scenarios.

This flexible approach enables you to develop your knowledge and professional capability while balancing study with workplace responsibilities.

 

Course content

• Understanding contemporary dementia care

Develop a deeper understanding of dementia, exploring the knowledge, values and professional responsibilities that underpin high-quality care across health and social care settings.

• Applying evidence to complex care

Explore the challenges associated with dementia care and evaluate evidence-based approaches that support informed decision-making, ethical practice and improved outcomes.

• Delivering person-centred care

Examine approaches that enable people living with dementia to live well, while recognising the vital role of family carers and promoting dignity, wellbeing and quality of life.

• Leading and improving professional practice

Develop the confidence to lead and coordinate high-quality dementia care, working collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams to enhance care delivery and service improvement.

• Professional standards and ethical practice

Consider the professional, ethical and organisational standards that underpin safe, compassionate and accountable dementia care, supported by critical reflection and continuous professional development.

• Translating learning into practice

Use workplace-focused activities and contemporary evidence to identify opportunities to strengthen dementia care within your own professional setting and support positive change across services.

 

Assessment

Assessment is designed to help you apply your learning to realistic dementia care scenarios and demonstrate how evidence can be translated into professional practice.

You will complete two complementary assessments. First, you will critically reflect on a practice-based vignette, identifying opportunities to improve outcomes for people living with dementia, family carers and multidisciplinary teams. Building on this, you will develop an evidence-based improvement plan that proposes practical enhancements to care delivery within the chosen setting.

Together, these assessments develop your ability to evaluate practice, apply current evidence, address complex care challenges and recommend meaningful improvements that can support high-quality dementia care within your workplace.

 

Applying your learning

Throughout the course, you will:

• Apply evidence-based approaches to realistic dementia care scenarios and reflect on how these relate to your own professional practice
• Critically evaluate current approaches to care, considering how ethical principles, professional standards and person-centred practice influence decision-making
• Analyse complex situations involving people living with dementia, family carers and multidisciplinary teams to identify opportunities for improvement
• Use reflection and discussion to develop practical solutions that can enhance the quality of dementia care within your workplace

You will leave with:

• Greater confidence in delivering compassionate, evidence-informed dementia care
• Enhanced skills to lead and contribute to improvements in professional practice and care quality
• Practical strategies for supporting people living with dementia, their families and colleagues across a range of care settings
• The capability to apply critical thinking, leadership and reflective practice to improve outcomes for individuals, services and organisations

 

Entry requirements

This course is designed for health and social care professionals who support people living with dementia as part of their professional role.

Applicants should normally have experience of studying at SCQF Level 9, SVQ Level 4 or an equivalent qualification. As this is an SCQF Level 10 course, participants should be prepared to study at postgraduate level. You should also be confident using digital technologies and have access to a laptop or computer with a webcam and reliable internet connection to support online learning.

 

Certification

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be awarded 20 credits at SCQF Level 10.

These credits may contribute towards further undergraduate study at UWS, where appropriate and in accordance with University regulations.

 

Meet the course presenter

Dr Anna Jack-Waugh is a Senior Lecturer in dementia and mental health nurse at the Alzheimer Scotland Centre for Policy and Practice at UWS. Anna has been involved in research and education projects globally. She teaches and leads the integration of dementia education in undergraduate and postgraduate Nursing and Paramedic programmes at UWS and the Carers Academy. Anna is a co-chair of the Higher Education Dementia Network and on the INTERDEM Task Force on Dementia Education. Her work has resulted in over thirty research outputs on dementia education for all.

 

Sector and workforce relevance

As demand for dementia care continues to grow, organisations need professionals who can deliver compassionate, evidence-informed care while responding to increasingly complex clinical, ethical and service challenges.

This course reflects contemporary professional practice by strengthening participants' ability to apply evidence, uphold professional standards and work effectively with people living with dementia, family carers and multidisciplinary teams. It supports workforce development by building the knowledge, leadership capability and reflective practice needed to improve the quality of dementia care across health and social care settings.

 

NOTE: This is a university module and upon approval of your application, you will be invited to register and then supported to complete enrolment. To enrol on the university system, the first step involves security set-up using the Microsoft Authenticator app; you will need to ensure that you have a compatible smartphone.

Further enrolment information is available at the Student Information Portal.

To access this module via the CPD route, individuals should be ordinarily resident in Scotland.