Zulu

Achieving Excellence in Relationship-Centered Dementia Care

Honor the soldier and sailor everywhere who bravely bears his country's cause. Honor, also, the citizen who cares for his brother in the field and serves, as best he can, the same cause. ~ Abraham Lincoln

Learner’s Resource – Module 1

Valuing Personhood, Relationships and Culture

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Bravo Zulu: Achieving Excellence in Relationship-Centered Dementia Care

Acknowledgements This program was developed by:

Kat Miller, (U.S. Army, Retired), Director Wendy Simons, Deputy Director of Health Wellness

in partnership with:

PERRY and University of Nevada,Reno

FOUNDATION Jennifer Carson, PhD, Director, Robert Kidd, President/CEO Dementia Engagement, Education and

Research (DEER) Program (*Bravo Zulu Author/Facilitator)

This program is being delivered as part of:

' University of Nevada, Reno Im School of Medicin e ~~' '>.!nford Center for Aq,nq ICECAPNEVADA ImprovingCare of Eldersthrough med .unr.edu /aging Communityand Academic Partnerships (775 ) 784 -4774

This training is supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $3,315,845 with 0% financed with nongovernmental sources. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.

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Bravo Zulu: Achieving Excellence in Relationship-Centered Dementia Care

Overview

Veterans and Dementia

As part of its Veterans-in-Care initiative, the Nevada Department of Veterans Services (NDVS) partnered with the Perry Foundation and Dr. Jennifer Carson, Director, Dementia Engagement, Education and Research Program, University of Nevada, Reno, to create Bravo Zulu: Achieving Excellence in Relationship-Centered Dementia Care, an innovative, comprehensive, 12-hour military cultural competence, dementia and eldercare training program, for three primary reasons:

1. The need to improve military cultural competence/humility among healthcare providers.

Nevada is home to at least 218,406 veterans, 47% of whom are over the age of 65. This mirrors the national demographic that approximately half of America’s 20 million veterans are over the age of 65. Increasingly, the majority of formal care and support for older and disabled veterans is provided outside of the VA system by civilian healthcare providers with an overwhelming lack of military cultural competence. Even within the VA system, civilian healthcare providers demonstrate a lack of military cultural competence, which can lead to poor health outcomes. Achieving cultural competence is a hallmark of quality care. Yet, national surveys have indicated low military cultural competence among healthcare providers and limited educational opportunities on military culture in healthcare training programs. While a few military cultural competence training programs exist, none have focused specifically on the care and support of older and disabled veterans. Bravo Zulu meets this need by improving military cultural competence/humility and helping healthcare providers understand the influence and impact of service experiences on the aging process and healthcare needs of older and disabled veterans.

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2. The need to provide comprehensive dementia care education.

Dementia is an umbrella term that describes a wide range of symptoms associated with cognitive impairment. This includes changes in memory, thinking, concentration, judgment, problem solving, and functioning severe enough to reduce a person's ability to perform everyday activities. Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia and accounts for 50 to 75 percent of cases. Other types of dementia include Lewy Body, Frontotemporal and Vascular. Currently affecting an estimated 5.8 million Ame