Other Titles

Nursing Leadership in Dementia Care: Research in a Vocational Context [Title Slide]

Abstract

Worldwide vocational education plays a crucial role in the mission towards dementia-friendly societies in which everyone is valuable and everyone can participate according to their own wishes. In the Netherlands, schools for secondary vocational education and training (VET) are particular essential in this respect, because 75% of healthcare professionals are trained here.

Healthcare professionals strive for care that goes beyond medical aspects. Especially nurses work from the unique needs and life experiences of care recipients. At the same time, they function in an environment that is constantly changing due to developments in healthcare technology and support. In order to follow social changes and make the right choices in this, it is important that (future) nursing professionals continue to develop their knowledge, skills and attitude from an investigative attitude. However, this does not happen automatically. The translation of scientific knowledge into healthcare practice through healthcare education requires intensive cooperation between professional practice, education and research.

In Dutch VET-schools so-called ‘practorates’ play an indispensable connecting role in this by conducting practice-oriented research. At Albeda, a large VET-school in Rotterdam Region has started a practorate Dementia were teacher-researchers, healthcare professionals, experts by experience and VET-students work on new ways of care for people with dementia and their loved ones. The practorate Dementia aims to bridge the gap between science and dementia care. It strives for students and graduates to be recognizable by their personal leadership within a professional context, specifically in the care of people with dementia.
In our presentation we will show our strategic plan of studies and the first results of our studies.

Notes

References:

Ter Maten – Speksnijder, A.J. & J. de Lange (2014). WHAT, SO WHAT en NOW WHAT? Een kwalitatief onderzoek naar de leermogelijkheden in reflectieve casestudies van casemanagers dementia in opleiding. Nederlands-Vlaams wetenschappelijk tijdschrift Verpleegkunde (4),4-12.

Ter Maten-Speksnijder, A.J., Grypdonck, M.H.F., Pool, A., Meurs, P.L. & AL. van Staa (2015). Learning to attain an advanced level of professional responsibility. Nurse Education Today 35(8), 954-9.

Description

In the Netherlands, VET-schools are developing so-called ‘practorates’, comparable with professorships in higher education. In the practorate Dementia work teacher-researchers, healthcare professionals, experts by experience and students on new ways of care. The aim is to bridge the gap between science and dementia care. It strives for students and graduates to be recognizable by their personal leadership within a professional context, specifically in the care of people with dementia.

Author Details

Ada ter Maten-Speksnijder, PhD, MScN

Sigma Membership

Rho Chi at-Large

Type

Presentation

Format Type

Text-based Document

Study Design/Type

Other

Research Approach

Other

Keywords:

Long-term Care, Continuing Education, Implementation Science, Leadership, Leadership Initiatives, Dementia Care

Conference Name

48th Biennial Convention

Conference Host

Sigma Theta Tau International

Conference Location

Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Conference Year

2025

Rights Holder

All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.

Review Type

Abstract Review Only: Reviewed by Event Host

Acquisition

Proxy-submission

Date of Issue

2025-12-01

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Nursing Leadership in Dementia Care

Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Worldwide vocational education plays a crucial role in the mission towards dementia-friendly societies in which everyone is valuable and everyone can participate according to their own wishes. In the Netherlands, schools for secondary vocational education and training (VET) are particular essential in this respect, because 75% of healthcare professionals are trained here.

Healthcare professionals strive for care that goes beyond medical aspects. Especially nurses work from the unique needs and life experiences of care recipients. At the same time, they function in an environment that is constantly changing due to developments in healthcare technology and support. In order to follow social changes and make the right choices in this, it is important that (future) nursing professionals continue to develop their knowledge, skills and attitude from an investigative attitude. However, this does not happen automatically. The translation of scientific knowledge into healthcare practice through healthcare education requires intensive cooperation between professional practice, education and research.

In Dutch VET-schools so-called ‘practorates’ play an indispensable connecting role in this by conducting practice-oriented research. At Albeda, a large VET-school in Rotterdam Region has started a practorate Dementia were teacher-researchers, healthcare professionals, experts by experience and VET-students work on new ways of care for people with dementia and their loved ones. The practorate Dementia aims to bridge the gap between science and dementia care. It strives for students and graduates to be recognizable by their personal leadership within a professional context, specifically in the care of people with dementia.
In our presentation we will show our strategic plan of studies and the first results of our studies.