Get you up to speed: Baristas receive more training than dementia carers, study reveals | News UK
Alzheimer’s Society calls for mandatory dementia training for care workers after research revealed over half lack adequate training compared to baristas in coffee preparation.
Michelle Dyson, chief executive at Alzheimer’s Society, insists mandatory dementia training is crucial following findings that only 47% of care staff receive adequate education in England.
Alzheimer’s Society is advocating for the UK Government to make dementia training mandatory for social care staff, addressing significant training gaps identified in recent research.
What we know so far
More than half of adult social care staff begin their roles without receiving any dementia training, as revealed by new research from the Alzheimer’s Society. The charity is calling for mandatory training, highlighting that baristas receive more training to prepare coffee than care workers do to support vulnerable adults with dementia.
The study, in collaboration with the Centre for Dementia Research at Leeds Beckett University, examined 119 training packages across 53 social care providers in England. It found that only 47% of staff received dementia training during induction, with many training packages offering just one or two hours of dementia-specific content.
In a stark assessment, Michelle Dyson, chief executive of the Alzheimer’s Society, stated that inadequate training could put dementia patients at risk of poor care. “Anything less than comprehensive training leaves care workers unprepared,” she warned. The charity is urging the government to ensure that care staff receive the training necessary to provide appropriate care.
The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services supports improved training across the sector, noting that the social care system is underfunded and in need of a comprehensive training strategy. President Jess McGregor emphasised the vital role care workers play in the lives of those with dementia and their families.
Meanwhile, Baroness Louise Casey, leading a major review of adult social care in England, suggested that dementia care is often overlooked, calling for increased investment in dementia trials and the appointment of a dedicated dementia tsar. The Department of Health and Social Care has committed to accelerating efforts to improve dementia care and research.
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Baristas get more training than dementia carers, research shows | News UK
More than half of adult social care staff begin looking after patients despite having had no dementia training, according to new research.
Alzheimer’s Society is now demanding that training be made mandatory after concerns that even baristas receive more training to make good coffee than care workers receive to look after vulnerable adults.
The charity worked with the Centre for Dementia Research at Leeds Beckett University and the IFF Research agency, which reviewed 119 training packages across 53 social care providers in England.
They found that fewer than half (47%) of social care staff received dementia training as part of their induction.
Half of dementia training packages for carers included only one or two hours of dementia-specific content, while just over a 39% of training was delivered at the level recommended for staff who regularly care for people with dementia.
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Just 52% of staff surveyed said they felt very competent in the care they were providing, the charity added.
Most dementia care is provided through social services, rather than the NHS, but Alzheimer’s Society says it’s up to the Government to make training mandatory through the NHS.
Around a million people in the UK have dementia, the society said, with this figure expected to rise to 1.4 million by 2040.
Michelle Dyson, chief executive at the Alzheimer’s Society, said gaps in training can put people with dementia at risk of ‘inadequate care’.
‘One hour of dementia training doesn’t even scratch the surface. Anything less than comprehensive training leaves care workers unprepared, coping with situations they haven’t been equipped for, which can put people with dementia at risk of inadequate care,’ she said.
‘Baristas can receive more training to make great coffee than care workers receive to provide dementia care. Care staff want and deserve better; they need dementia training which gives them the skills and confidence to deliver the best possible care.’
The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services said it encourages upskilling and adequate training for care staff working with dementia patients.
President Jess McGregor said: ‘Our social care system is vastly underfunded and we need a proper plan and funding to support the provision of training, and to ensure that all care workers have access to comprehensive professional training and are reimbursed to attend.
‘This is a high priority given the hugely valuable role care workers play in the lives of those people in our communities who draw on care and support, and their families.’
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But last month, Baroness Louise Casey, who is leading a major review into adult social care in England, suggested dementia is not given the necessary focus in healthcare because it generally affects retired elderly people.
She called for investment in dementia trials to be urgently scaled up and for a new full-time dementia tsar to be appointed.
The Department of Health and Social Care said at the time that it was ‘accelerating work to transform dementia care and research, including by creating a dementia leadership role to drive forward action’.