SIDECAR - Skills in DEmentia CARe: linking the evidence about higher education and psychosocial care in dementia across Europe

Introduction: Dementia is a health priority worldwide. Research shows that psychosocial interventions can improve the quality of life of people with dementia and their caregivers. However, an actual gap concerns the implementation of empirical evidence into clinical practice. In this regard, knowledge base driven curricula in psychosocial care can improve skills and competences of the Higher Education (HE) students interested in this field. Skills In DEmentia Care (SiDECar) is an Erasmus+ project funded under the KA2 Strategic Partnerships for HE (2018-2021) aimed at promoting psychosocial knowledge in dementia care through the introduction of a transnational HE curriculum focused on it. Partners are: the University of Bologna (Italy), Maastricht University (the Netherlands), the University of Salamanca (Spain) and the Institute for Postgraduate Medical Education (Czech Republic). Method: A survey was implemented to identify courses on psychosocial care delivered across Europe. Furthermore, European guidelines/recommendations along with national dementia plans were analyzed to investigate the actual state of psychosocial care. These actions will lead to identify core topics for the development of academic courses and/or curricula. Results: Preliminary results showed that 19% of delivered teachings belong to the first level, 80% to the second level, and 1% to the third one (Bologna Process, 1999). 38% are courses, 23% are modules, and 39% are topics dealt within courses or modules not strictly related to dementia care themes. They have a theoretical focus in the 18% of cases while they relate to practice in the 53% and to mixed issues in the 29%. Most of them are distributed in central/western institutes/universities (89%). Conclusions: Results will be discussed linking the evidence about the actual situation of HE in psychosocial care across Europe and the marginal role of psychosocial care in national, regional and European plans, guidelines and recommendations