PP-1 Developing online education for namaste care

<h3>Introduction</h3> Namaste Care is a multi-component sensory intervention for people with advanced dementia and at end of life, developed in the USA by Joyce Simard (2022). The Association for Dementia Studies (ADS), University of Worcester led an Alzheimer’s Society-funded Implementation Project, Namaste Care Intervention UK, around the use of Namaste Care in care homes in the UK. The study results were extremely positive, significantly decreasing levels of agitation and increasing quality of life at the end of life (Latham et al, 2020). <h3>Aims</h3> The ADS received funding from Marie Curie for an education project, with the aim of seeing these results replicated in more care homes and other settings. The funding is enabling us to develop, deliver and evaluate a fully-online short course, to support staff to implement Namaste Care in their settings. We will be creating an online education product that is evidence-based and can be delivered at cost for future iterations. We are collaborating with a range of people to ensure there is specialist contribution on topics within Namaste Care delivery. Our steering group for the project includes people with lived experience and colleagues from the NEAR charity (Namaste Education and Resources), with specialisms in palliative care and a focus on supporting the sustainability of Namaste Care, providing ongoing support and resources. <h3>Methods</h3> The pilot course will be delivered October-November 2024. Staff attending the course will be asked to complete pre and post course surveys, as well as being invited to contribute to a follow up focus group to better understand how the training impacted on their ability to implement Namaste Care within their settings. <h3>Results, Conclusion and Impact</h3> This project is still in progress. We will report on delivering the pilot course, our findings from the surveys and focus groups, and our plans for future education delivery. <h3>References</h3> Latham I, Brooker D, Bray J, Jacobson-Wright N, Frost F. The Impact of implementing a namaste care intervention in UK care homes for people living with advanced dementia, staff and families. <i>International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health</i> 2020;<b>17</b>(16):6004 Simard J. (2022) The End of Life Namaste Care Program for People with Dementia (3rd edition) Health Professions Press. Baltimore, Maryland