Module 2 — Experience: Patient, carer, family

Module 2 expands on the content presented in Module 1.  It humanises the broader understanding of dementia and discusses how a dementia diagnosis affects the patient, their family and friends. Many health professionals do not have opportunities to see their patient outside their workplace.  That is, working in an acute healthcare facility may limit a nurse’s view of patients and carers and their everyday experiences.  Likewise, community workers may not have the opportunity to see the patients’ acute healthcare experiences.  While communication between health services is core to service provision, and each service interfaces with the others, the opportunity to see the services and the transitions between them from a consumer perspective is rare and valuable.

The theoretical knowledge gained from this module is enhanced by additional learning opportunities. The content of this module is linked to examples in Ed’s narrative, activities and learning strategies to better understand the concepts.