Service learning at dementia care programs: an orientation and training program

The present paper describes a project that addresses the unique challenge service-learners face at dementia care programs. The project was conducted in conjunction with two courses on aging that offer students a service-learning (S-L) option at a university adult day service (ADS) program that accepts service-learners from these courses. The intervention consisted of two elements: (a) an orientation and follow- up sessions in which students learned about the causes of dementia, the behavioral characteristics exhibited by persons with dementia, and the best methods of interacting effectively with cognitively impaired persons; and (b) a structured scrapbook project for service-learners to exercise their new knowledge and skills. The authors designed the project to increase students' comfort in the dementia care setting and to facilitate students' knowledge of the elderly. The following sections describe the project and its procedures, benefits, and challenges. Recommendations for continuing the project and for adapting the project to other dementia sites are provided.