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How Dementia Live® Training Enhanced Law Enforcement Response in North Central Texas

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Industry

Government

Challenge

For persons living with dementia, a personal encounter with law enforcement is often a frightening and dehumanizing experience. A lack of understanding about dementia and empathy for persons living with dementia by law enforcement many times results in a negative outcome. In order to address these challenges, law enforcement need to understand how frightening this interaction can be, engage in education about dementia, and develop empathy for people living with dementia.

Results

Post-training surveys revealed significant gains in officer understanding, confidence, and empathy. Officers reported a 40.9% increase in confidence interacting with people with dementia and a 25.7% improvement in responding with empathy. This case highlights how experiential learning, targeted curriculum, and strong partnerships can lead to measurable, positive changes in community-based dementia care and public safety.

Key Product

Dementia Live®

dffw.org
40.9%
Increase in confidence interacting with people with dementia
25.7%
Improvement in responding with understanding and empathy
19.8%
Improvement in identifying appropriate communication skills for interacting with people living with dementia
11.2%
Improvement in understanding situations that can cause anxiety and distress for people living with dementia

I really enjoyed the live experience and scenarios, and felt they were super beneficial in helping us understand dementia.

Law Enforcement Training Participant

Participant

Really was an eye-opening experience, learning about people with dementia is a very hard topic to teach/learn about but these instructors were very well prepared. Recommend this class to any recruit.

Law Enforcement Training Participant

Participant

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About Dementia Friendly Fort Worth

Dementia Friendly Fort Worth (DFFW) is dedicated to creating a supportive and inclusive community for individuals living with dementia, their families, and caregivers. Through various programs and partnerships, DFFW provides education, resources, and training to enhance the quality of life for those affected by dementia.

The Challenge

For persons living with dementia, a personal encounter with law enforcement is often a frightening and dehumanizing experience. A lack of understanding about dementia and empathy for persons living with dementia by law enforcement many times results in a negative outcome. In order to address these challenges, law enforcement personnel need to understand how frightening this interaction can be, engage in education about dementia, and develop develop best practices rooted in empathy for people living with dementia. 

The Solution

Dementia Friendly Fort Worth (DFFW), in partnership with the North Central Texas Council of Governments Regional Police Academy, implements the Dementia Live® training program to enhance law enforcement interactions with individuals living with dementia. This decision was driven by the need to improve officers' empathy, communication skills, and confidence. The full-day training includes immersive simulations, lectures, role play, and video content. One participant noted, 'I really enjoyed the live experience and scenarios, and felt they were super beneficial in helping us understand dementia.'  This training began in 2022 with the goal to train 250 participants. 

The Results

Training participants take a pre and post test as part of each training session.  As of January 2024, post-training surveys revealed significant gains in officer understanding, confidence, and empathy. Officers reported a 40.9% increase in confidence interacting with people with dementia and a 25.7% improvement in responding with empathy. 'Really was an eye-opening experience, learning about people with dementia is a very hard topic to teach/learn about but these instructors were very well prepared. Recommend this class to any recruit,' said another participant. DFFW exceeded its goal by training 290 officers, demonstrating the program's effectiveness in improving community-based dementia care and public safety.  Given the strong results, the training continues to be offered by DFFW for local law enforcement recruits. 

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