Dementia and mild cognitive impairment in the older prison population in England and Wales (DECISION): developing a dementia care training package for use in prisons

The rising prevalence of dementia in the UK presents a public health and economic challenge. People over the age of 60 are the fastest growing age group in prison and the number of people in prison who experience dementia is rising. There is a lack of research focused on improving management and support for people in prison who may experience dementia, but growing awareness of the need for staff training in prisons to identify and support people showing symptoms of dementia. This paper reports the development of a theory and evidence-based training package for prison staff and peer carers to identify and support people in prison with mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Training content and format was informed by the literature on dementia training in prisons and analysis of qualitative and quantitative data from semi-structured interviews with prison staff and a survey administered to prison governors and healthcare managers, both of which explored current provision of dementia training and training needs. A stakeholder working group reviewed and revised the training during two interactive meetings. Future research to evaluate the effectiveness of the training in practice is required.