Dementia Management Training Programme for Primary Health Care Providers

Application and Effectiveness of a RE-AIM-Based Dementia Management Competency Training Program for Primary Health Care Providers: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness and implementation outcomes of a dementia management competency training program for primary healthcare workers. A cluster randomized controlled trial will be conducted among primary healthcare institutions in Nanping, Fujian Province, China. Eligible primary health care providers will be recruited from community health service centers and township health centers.Participating institutions will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to either a structured dementia management training group or a self-directed learning control group. The intervention group will receive a 12-week blended training program, including online learning, an in-person skills workshop, and case-based practice supervision. The control group will receive self-directed online learning materials. Outcomes will be assessed at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention. The primary outcome is the change in dementia knowledge, measured using the Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale. Secondary outcomes include dementia-related attitudes, dementia management practice competency, self-reported dementia management behaviors, objective screening and referral-related indicators, and implementation outcomes based on the RE-AIM framework.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Dementia; Primary Health Care Providers
• Intervention / Treatment: Genetic: Structured Dementia Management Competency Training Program; Behavioral: Self-directed Dementia Learning

Detailed Description

This study uses a hybrid effectiveness-implementation design integrating a cluster randomized controlled trial and implementation evaluation. The trial will assess the effectiveness of a dementia management competency training program for primary health care providers at both the individual and organizational levels. At the individual level, the study will evaluate the effects of the training on dementia knowledge, attitudes, practice competency, and dementia management-related clinical behaviors. At the organizational level, the study will examine reach, adoption, implementation quality, and maintenance of the training program in real-world primary healthcare settings.The study will be conducted in community health service centers and township health centers in Nanping, Fujian Province, China. Primary healthcare institutions will serve as clusters. Approximately 16 institutions will be recruited and randomized to the intervention or control group at a 1:1 ratio, with approximately 20 primary health care providers recruited from each institution.The intervention group will receive a 12-week structured blended training program named "Hand in Hand Along the Memory Path". During weeks 1-4, participants will complete seven online learning modules, with a total learning duration of approximately 3 hours. At the end of week 4, participants will attend an in-person skills workshop of approximately 2 hours, focusing on standardized use of cognitive screening and assessment tools. During weeks 5-12, participants will take part in online case-based supervision every two weeks and complete practice tasks related to cognitive screening and dementia management.The control group will receive self-directed online learning materials, including the same knowledge module videos and text-based materials. However, the control group will not receive structured learning tasks, case analysis, knowledge tests, demonstration videos, forum-based support, learning reminders, expert support, toolkits, in-person workshops, or case-based supervision.Quantitative data will be collected at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention. Semi-structured interviews will be conducted 3 months after the intervention to explore participants' experiences, implementation barriers and facilitators, and factors affecting maintenance. Quantitative and qualitative findings will be integrated according to the RE-AIM framework.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 240
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Xinying Lin; Phone Number: +86 18965733707; Email: xinyinglin0416@163.com

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Primary healthcare workers aged 18 years or older

Registered healthcare professionals holding a formal license issued by the national health authority

At least 1 year of work experience

Able to access the internet using a computer, tablet, or mobile phone

Currently working in a participating community health service center or township health center

Willing to participate in the study and provide written informed consent

Exclusion Criteria:

Personnel who do not directly participate in patient disease management, including logistics or auxiliary staff

Interns, trainees, or students

Individuals currently participating in other similar dementia training interventions

Individuals planning to leave their current institution within the next 12 months

Individuals who refuse to participate in the study or decline to provide written informed consent

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Other
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Triple

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Structured Dementia Management Training Group; Participants in this group will receive a 12-week structured blended dementia management competency training program. The program includes online learning modules, an in-person skills workshop, case-based supervision, and practice tasks designed to improve dementia knowledge, attitudes, practice competency, and dementia management-related behaviors among primary health care providers.	Genetic: Structured Dementia Management Competency Training Program; The intervention is a 12-week blended training program. During weeks 1-4, participants will complete seven online modules with a total learning duration of approximately 3 hours. At the end of week 4, participants will attend a 2-hour in-person skills workshop focusing on standardized cognitive screening and assessment. During weeks 5-12, participants will participate in online case-based supervision every two weeks and complete practice tasks, including cognitive screening records and dementia management case records.; Other Names: "Hand in Hand on the Memory Journey" dementia management training programme
Active Comparator: Self-directed Learning Control Group; Participants in this group will receive self-directed online learning materials related to dementia management. The materials include knowledge module videos and text-based resources but do not include structured learning tasks, case analysis, knowledge tests, demonstration videos, forum-based support, learning reminders, expert support, toolkits, in-person workshops, or case-based supervision.	Behavioral: Self-directed Dementia Learning; Participants will be provided with online dementia-related learning materials and will arrange their own learning time and place. No structured completion requirements, assessments, in-person activities, or expert supervision will be provided.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in dementia knowledge score	Dementia knowledge will be measured using the Dementia Knowledge Assessment Scale. The primary outcome is the change in total DKAS score from baseline to immediately after the 12-week intervention. Higher scores indicate greater dementia knowledge.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in dementia-related attitudes and confidence	Dementia-related attitudes and confidence will be measured using the General Practitioners' Attitudes and Confidence Scale for Dementia. Higher scores indicate more positive attitudes and greater confidence.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention
Change in dementia management practice competency	Dementia management practice competency was measured using the Dementia Management Practice Competency Scale for Primary Care, which was developed by the research team. Higher scores on the scale indicate greater dementia management practice competency.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention
Change in self-reported dementia management-related behaviors	Participants will report the frequency of dementia management-related behaviors during the past month, including cognitive screening, identification of suspected cognitive impairment, referral recommendation, communication with patients or family members, and dementia-related health education.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention
Cognitive screening implementation rate	The cognitive screening implementation rate will be calculated as the number of patients aged 65 years or older who received cognitive screening divided by the total number of patients aged 65 years or older seen during the same period, multiplied by 100%.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention
Referral recommendation documentation rate	The referral recommendation documentation rate will be calculated as the number of screen-positive patients with documented referral recommendations divided by the total number of screen-positive patients, multiplied by 100%.	Baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months after the intervention

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Online course completion rate	The proportion of intervention group participants who complete all online learning modules.	Immediately after the intervention
In-person workshop attendance rate	The proportion of intervention group participants who attend the in-person skills workshop.	Immediately after the intervention
Practice task completion rate	The proportion of intervention group participants who submit the required screening records and case management records.	Immediately after the intervention
Online supervision participation rate	The number of online supervision sessions attended divided by the number of scheduled supervision sessions.	Immediately after the intervention
Training satisfaction and acceptability	Satisfaction and acceptability will be assessed using a self-designed questionnaire with Likert-scale items and open-ended questions.	Immediately after the intervention
Institutional maintenance of dementia-related practices	Institutional maintenance will be assessed using a questionnaire completed by institutional managers, including whether cognitive screening, result explanation, referral recommendation, or related training continues after the intervention.	3 months after the intervention
Barriers and facilitators to implementation and maintenance	Semi-structured interviews will be conducted with intervention group participants and institutional managers to explore implementation experiences, barriers, facilitators, and suggestions for optimization.	3 months after the intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Fujian Medical University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): June 15, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): September 15, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 15, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 26, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 26, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): June 1, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): June 3, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 1, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: dementia; primary care; training; implementation science; cluster randomized controlled trial; RE-AIM; primary health care providers; dementia management
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Mental Disorders; Neurocognitive Disorders; Dementia
• Other Study ID Numbers: K2026-04-027

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No