Background
The numbers of people living with
dementia are overwhelming.
Dementia education is important to prepare
nursing students to care for this population.
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of a virtual
dementia experience on
nursing students' attitudes and empathy for people with
dementia,
dementia knowledge, and
self-confidence for
dementia care.
Methods
The design was a 2-group, pretest-posttest using a convenience sample of undergraduate
nursing students (n = 112). The intervention group (n = 56) participated in a virtual
dementia experience.
Results
Both groups experienced improved attitudes toward people with
dementia, increased
dementia knowledge, improved
self-confidence for
dementia care, and improved empathy (Perspective Taking). However, the virtual
dementia experience did not lead to improved outcomes compared to the standard teaching approaches.
Conclusions
Dementia-specific education had a significant influence on students' attitudes, knowledge,
self-confidence, and empathy, whereas the type of education did not impact outcomes.
