Effects of Simulation on Nursing Students' Dementia Knowledge and Empathy: A Mixed Method Study.

The experience of living with dementia is multifaceted while unique to the individual. Dementia education must empower nursing students to recognize the complexity of the experience while also emphasizing the need for person centered care. Participation in Dementia Live provides nursing students a glimpse into the life of a person living with dementia incorporating common symptoms associated with dementia and time for reflection regarding the experience. The purpose of the study was to determine the effects of dementia simulation on nursing students' dementia knowledge and empathy for people living with dementia. This convergent mixed methods study involved a convenience sample of 65 undergraduate nursing students. A pretest/posttest design was used to collect quantitative data while thematic analysis of focus group discussions was used for qualitative data collection. Quantitative results reported a significant increase in empathy. Qualitative findings supported the quantitative findings with themes identifying four of the six components of empathy. This study adds to the understanding of teaching and learning about dementia care and highlights the contributions a seven-minute simulation made to improve empathy.