Evaluating a specialist dementia training program for home care workers

The study aims to evaluate the impact of a dementia-specific training program (PITCH) delivered to home care workers who provide services to clients with dementia. INTERVENTION The PITCH program is a face-to-face training program for home care workers, specifically tailored in content for relevance to paid carers who service clients with dementia. The PITCH training program includes participant training materials and workbook with content on dementia and its impact/symptoms, person-centered care, effective communication, values, understanding triggers for behaviours and effective response, and resources for further reading. Program delivery includes case studies, role modelling and group discussions designed to provide experiential learning. The PITCH program is delivered face-to-face by an experienced trainer at two half-day sessions. DESIGN Approximately 120 people living with dementia at home and receiving a home care service will participate in the trial, as well as their family carers and paid home care staff. Over 200 home care workers will be trained in the PITCH program. The RCT will evaluate PITCH related outcomes for up to 12 months. All participants will be controls at baseline (0 months), with home care workers randomised to receive the intervention (PITCH) at one of two time-points during the RCT, and with all participants in the intervention receiving training by the end of the RCT. RECRUITMENT We will recruit from amongst our partner aged care service providers who provide home care services in Australia. We will recruit clients, their family carers (or non-relative carers), and home care workers. CONSENT Five Participant Information Sheet/Consent Forms have been developed to meet the needs of different participant groups: person with dementia, person responsible, family carer, non-relative carer and home care worker. Client: Research staff will assess the potential participant's capacity to consent using the approach recommended by the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre. If the researcher thinks that capacity is impaired, then an appropriate person responsible/medical treatment decision-maker may provide consent on behalf of the participant. Family Carer / Home care worker: The researchers will contact potential family carer and home care worker participants, explain the project in detail and organise a time for the researcher to visit the participant to obtain informed consent. Separate Participant Information Sheet/Consent Form documents have been developed for the home care worker, family carer and non-relative carer. WITHDRAWAL Participants may withdraw from the study at any time. with no effect on their employment or relationship with their employer, the research team or the National Ageing Research Institute. The research team has experience in working with people with dementia, family carers and home care workers. Every effort will be made to support participants in the study and to mitigate the risk of withdrawal. To maximise adherence to the PITCH program by home care workers, training will be undertaken during their normal working hours. They will receive their usual pay for attending interviews and training, and backfill payment will be made to the service providers. Attendance at training will be monitored, with any non-attendance followed up. The PITCH training program will also include several brief assessments, which will allow the research team to monitor training adherence.