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  • University of Worcester

Ethics and Personhood in Dementia Care

Explore practical person-centered approaches to dementia care to promote ethical decision-making and compassionate support.

300 enrolled on this course

A group of senior citizens in a care home surrounded by care takers.

Ethics and Personhood in Dementia Care

300 enrolled on this course

  • 8 weeks

  • 2 hours per week

  • Accreditation available

  • Digital certificate when eligible

  • Open level

Find out more about how to join this course

The CPD Certification Service

This course has been certified by the CPD Certification Service as conforming to continuing professional development principles. Find out more.

Apply ethical practices to improve dementia care

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), over 55 million people are living with dementia worldwide. While there is no cure for dementia, there are still ways to care for individuals with dementia and their support systems.

On this flexible, online course from McGraw Hill, you’ll explore ways to improve quality of life for dementia patients by examining ethical considerations around person-centred care.

At the end of eight weeks, you’ll leave the course with greater knowledge and skills to confidently deal with difficult ethical issues when caring for individuals with dementia.

Assess ethical theories in dementia

Ethical issues are involved in every decision involving someone with dementia. Start this course by learning what some of these issues are and the four ethical theories approaches to providing support.

You’ll apply these theories and approaches as it relates to coherence, which involves understanding and integrating various ethical perspectives to create consistent and compassionate care strategies.

Grasp the concept of personhood and patient best interests

Then explore what it means to have personhood and how this concept applies to individuals living with dementia. Understand how to use the Situated Embodied Agent (SEA) perspective to provide more compassionate and person-centred care.

Assess ethical issues when supporting dementia patients

Lastly, you’ll delve into more nuanced issues that you may encounter when supporting individuals living with dementia. Before finishing with end-of-life ethical dilemmas, you’ll discuss the implications of assistive technology, forced care, sexuality and intimacy, as it relates to dementia care.

Syllabus

  • Week 1

    Ethical Issues in Dementia

    • A female student listening to music and studying in a library.

      Welcome to the Course

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 1 is discussed.

    • An elderly woman is seated on a wheelchair, with her grandchildren on either side.

      Introduction to Ethics

      This activity outlines what ethics and morals are and how ordinary decisions can be ethical in nature.

    • A younger person holding the hand of a senior person.

      Ethical Issues

      In this activity, students will identify ethical issues in connection with dementia. They will learn about ethical issues that emerged after talking with family carers and from reading the relevant literature.

    • A confident young businessman standing outside a modern building

      Ethical Theories

      In this activity, learners will be presented with four main ethical theories: consequentialism, deontology, principlism, and virtue ethics.

    • A person working on the laptop. There are papers on the desk around the laptop.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 1 will be discussed.

  • Week 2

    Patterns of Practice and Truth-Telling

    • An elderly woman deep in thought.

      Introduction to Week 2

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 2 is discussed.

    • An elderly man, who is in deep thought, sitting in a library.

      An approach to ethical thinking

      In this activity, learners are introduced to patterns of practice and three types of coherence.

    • An elderly man taking a glass of water and pills from another person.

      Truth-Telling

      In this activity, learners will understand the issues involved in truth-telling while dealing with people with dementia and how to answer appropriately in tricky situations.

    • A group of three students reading from a book.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 2 is discussed.

  • Week 3

    Personhood in Dementia

    • An elderly woman at the riverside, deep in thought.

      Introduction to Week 3

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 3 is discussed.

    • A young person holds the hand of an elderly person.

      Person-Centred Care and Personhood

      In this activity, learners will understand what it means to be a person, what is person-centered care, and how people with dementia were victims of ‘malignant social psychology’.

    • An elderly man standing near a gate with a contemplative expression.

      Narrow Views of Personhood

      In this activity, learners explore the threats and dangers posed by narrow views of personhood, psychological continuity, and hypercognitivism in dementia.

    • A group of senior citizens in a care home surrounded by care takers.

      The SEA View

      In this activity, learners will understand the broad view of personhood introduced by the situated-embodied-agent (SEA) view, and what it means to be situated, embodied, and an agent as a person with dementia.

    • A student sits at a table making notes. The table is stacked with many textbooks.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 3 is discussed.

  • Week 4

    The SEA View of Personhood and Feeding and Drinking

    • Senior couple sitting at a table outdoors and conversing over coffee.

      Introduction to Week 4

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 4 is discussed.

    • An elderly woman wearing a hospital gown is eating a salad.

      Introduction to Feeding and Drinking

      In this activity, learners will understand how eating and drinking can become a problem in dementia and how to deal with them.

    • An elderly man drinking from a coffee cup.

      Personhood, Feeding and Drinking

      This activity discusses optimal palliative care in older people with dementia, the tensions and ethical issues surrounding the use of artificial feeding and the SEA view of the same.

    • A checklist with checkmarks, a pen, and two paper clips are on a table.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 4 is discussed.

  • Week 5

    Best Interests and Dementia

    • A young woman hugs her grandmother at home.

      Introduction to Week 5

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 5 is discussed.

    • A health care professional helps a senior woman walk with the help of crutches.

      Which Conception?

      In this activity, learners recap the definitions of proxy and substituted judgments and possible problems with both.

    • An elderly man smiling.

      The MCA and Best Interests

      This activity discusses the checklist in the Mental Capacity Act Code of Practice.

    • An elderly woman smiling.

      Personhood and Best Interests

      This activity analyzes the checklist in the MCA with respect to the SEA view of personhood.

    • Disabled person with a walking frame.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 5 is discussed.

  • Week 6

    Issues Around Assistive Technology and “Forced Care”

    • Grandparents leading their granddaughter inside a house.

      Introduction to Week 6

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 6 is discussed.

    • An elderly man with a walking stick.

      Assistive Technology

      In this activity, learners understand the definition of assistive technology and how patterns of practice can help navigate ethical issues that arise in connection with assistive technology.

    • A young woman taking a pill from a medicine bottle.

      Forced Care

      In this activity, learners understand the concept of forced care and how the SEA view of personhood and patterns of practice can help think about the ethical issues that arise in connection with forced care.

    • A young man standing outdoors writes in his notebook.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 6 is discussed.

  • Week 7

    Sexuality and Intimacy

    • A senior couple dancing.

      Introduction to Week 7

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 7 and a recap of the last two weeks is discussed.

    • A senior couple sits on a bench in front of a lake.

      Sexuality and Intimacy

      In this activity, learners understand the dilemmas in connection with sexual activity in older people with dementia, and how the SEA view of personhood and patterns of practice help us to think about these issues.

    • A senior couple smiling and standing outdoors.

      Course Review

      In this activity, learners will attempt a quiz to recap the concepts learned so far. They will then be given a summary of sexuality and intimacy in people with dementia.

    • A young man is jogging and is surrounded by lush green trees.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 7 is discussed.

  • Week 8

    End-of-Life Issues and Dementia

    • An elderly husband places his hand on the shoulder of his wife.

      Introduction to Week 8

      An outline of the topics that will be covered in Week 8 is discussed

    • A young person holds the hand of an elderly person.

      End-of-Life Issues

      In this activity, learners will be presented with case studies on end-of-life and assisted dying in older people with advanced dementia.

    • An elderly man looks at his wife, who is lying on a hospital bed.

      Two Doctrines

      In this activity, learners will be presented with a case of resuscitation in an older individual with advanced dementia and learn about the doctrine of ordinary and extraordinary means and the doctrine of double effect.

    • A young doctor with a pensive expression.

      Wrap Up

      A brief summary of the concepts covered in Week 8 is discussed.

Who is this accredited by?

The CPD Certification Service
The CPD Certification Service:

The CPD Certification Service was established in 1996 and is the leading independent CPD accreditation institution operating across industry sectors to complement the CPD policies of professional and academic bodies.

When would you like to start?

Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.

  • Available now

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Identify the extent of ethical issues that arise in the context of dementia, both for the person living with dementia and for those (formally or informally) who provide care.
  • Explain (using driving as an issue) the four main theories of ethics: consequentialism, duty-based ethics (deontology), principlism and virtue ethics.
  • Discuss an approach to ethics that relies on coherence (“patterns of practice”).
  • Reflect on how person-centred care is based on a broad notion of what it is to be a person (that is, what it is to have personhood).
  • Explore a broad view of personhood: the situated-embodied-agent (SEA) view.
  • Explore what might be in the best interests of a person living with dementia in connection with the use of assistive technology using the notions of patterns of practice and personhood.
  • Explain issues that arise in connection with sexuality and intimacy for people living with dementia using the notions of patterns of practice and personhood.
  • Assess issues that arise in connection with the end of life using the notions of patterns of practice and personhood.

Who is the course for?

This course is designed for health professionals looking to upskill in ethical dementia care. It’s particularly suited for health and care professionals, students in health-related studies, and those living with dimension or people with dementia. No prior knowledge is needed to join.

Who will you learn with?

Julian Hughes

Julian Hughes was a NHS consultant for over 20 years in North Tyneside and Newcastle. He has been both a professor of philosophy at Newcastle University and professor of old age psychiatry at Bristol.

Who developed the course?

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McGraw Hill

With over 130 years’ experience, we continue to evolve as a global education pioneer within the sector, transforming from a print-centric producer of content to a leader in digital resources and adaptive learning solutions.

University of Worcester

University of Worcester

The University of Worcester is a close-knit and high-achieving community where students are supported to succeed at every level.

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Choose the best way to learn for you!

Subscribe & save

$244.99 for a whole year

Automatically renews

Develop skills to further your career

  • Access to this course
  • Access to 1,000+ courses
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Digital certificate when you're eligible

Cancel for free anytime

Buy this course

$109/one-off payment

Fulfill your current learning need

  • Access to this course
  • Learn at your own pace
  • Discuss your learning in comments
  • Printed and digital certificate when you’re eligible

Limited access

Free

Sample the course materials

  • Access expires 1 Apr 2025

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

Find out more about certificates, Unlimited or buying a course (Upgrades)

Sale price available until 3 March 2025 at 23:59 (UTC). T&Cs apply.

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