AGES8028 Leadership to Support Person-centred Dementia Care

2019

4.5

1 x 5-hour independent study weekly
1 x 2-hour on-line exercises weekly
1 x 2-hour on-line lecture per semester
1 x 1-hour on-line tutorial monthly

Familiarity in searching databases and using the research literature.

Basic understanding of dementia and person-centred approach to care.

Available to post graduate students only

Assignment(s); Tutorial participation

This topic provides students from diverse professional backgrounds with the opportunity to consider the importance of leadership at all levels in organisations to facilitate quality dementia care. Recent research has demonstrated the significance of leadership to the implementation and sustainability of quality dementia care. This topic focuses on the knowledge, theory and practice in relation to leadership in person centred dementia care. This will provide students with the capacity to develop strategies that improve the delivery of quality dementia care, fostering systems by which governing bodies, managers, clinicians and staff share responsibility and accountability. This will include consideration of the attributes and skills required to provide leadership in a person-centred context, and with a particular focus on fostering cultures of learning for those caring for people with dementia in aged care settings and the wider community, implementing practice change, monitoring outcomes, building capacity, and supporting sustainable practice

The nature of dementia is such that traditional hierarchies of management structure are mismatched with current best practice in dementia. Leadership conducive to person centred dementia care is not top down management but rather multilevel leadership which results in empowerment across levels of staff and confidence to implement new strategies, adapt communication methods and determine the reasons for changes in behaviour. This topic covers the theoretical and evidence-base underpinning leadership supporting person centred dementia care with a focus on developing knowledge and skills relevant to fostering cultures of learning, personal development, interpersonal communication, supporting practice change and monitoring outcomes.

The aims of this topic are to:

• Raise awareness of the impact of leadership on specific aspects of individualised dementia care;
• Encourage a proactive approach to leadership among staff can result in empowerment and confidence to implement new strategies to support person centred dementia care.

At the end of this topic, students will be able to:

• Explain the impact of leadership on specific aspects of individualised dementia care
• Critically analyse the theory behind leadership with the aim of improving practice
• Evaluate personal leadership skills within the theoretical framework
• Appraise and summarise current evidence in dementia care
• Assess strategies to increase the capacity of team work in an organisation to deal effectively with unanticipated problems
• Critically analyse leadership attributes and skills required for innovative team work to implement practice change and sustain person centred dementia care
• Formulate strategies to develop a culture of learning