A person-centred approach to meeting the mental health needs of people with dementia

A 2-day course devised and delivered by DementiaTrainers.


Day 1

  • Defining good mental health and well-being in people with dementia
  • Facts, statistics and up-to-date research about mental health and older people
  • Common and severe mental health problems
  • Understanding the causes and types of depression
  • The differences between dementia and depression
  • Treatment and support available for depression
  • Factors that contribute to an individual’s mental distress
  • Identifying and meeting the needs of the individual
  • Helping people with dementia to improve their mental well-being

Day 2

  • The experience of mental distress: developing empathy and understanding
  • Anxiety in people with dementia: understanding and responding to compulsive behaviour
  • Schizophrenia: positive and negative ‘symptoms’
  • The causes and consequences of the ethnic bias in the diagnosis of schizophrenia
  • Recognising the differences between vision/perceptual difficulties and hallucinations in people with dementia
  • Strategies to support people who experience hallucinations or delusions
  • The use of medication with people with dementia who develop mental health problems

Back to Sample Course Outlines