Barriers and enablers of dementia training in healthcare workers in rural and remote Australia: A scoping review to inform future approaches to training

Introduction

Dementia is now responsible for the greatest burden of disease of any chronic illness in older Australians. Rural and remote communities bear the impacts of this disproportionately. Additional training and education for healthcare staff to support people living with dementia is needed.

Objective

The objective of this scoping review was to map and synthesise the evidence related to barriers and enablers of accessing dementia training for Australian healthcare workers located in rural and remote areas.

Design

This scoping review systematically searched multiple databases in January 2023 for peer-reviewed literature on the topic. Reviewers used Covidence to screen titles and abstracts of located sources, and to screen full-text articles.

Findings

From 187 articles screened, seven peer-reviewed journal articles were included in the final data analysis; all were from Australia or Canada. The most common barrier described was low staffing, precluding release of staff for dementia training. Enablers to participation in dementia training were availability of online training programs, as well as training providers collaborating with end users to ensure the training met their learning needs.

Discussion

This review provides evidence of barriers and enablers specific to rural and remote healthcare workers accessing dementia training. It also explores other approaches to training that have been trialled successfully in different settings.

Conclusion

Addressing the identified barriers and enablers may assist in developing training approaches appropriate for existing staff, and in meeting training needs for the future workforce.