Impacts of Public Health Volunteers’ Competency Development Programme on Their Knowledge and Perceived Self-Effcacy in Caring for Older People at the Risk of Dementia: A Bangkok-Based Case Study
Keywords:
competency development programme, perceived self-effcacy, older people at the risk of dementia, public health volunteersAbstract
Abstract:
Objective: To examine the impacts of a competency development programme for public health volunteers on their knowledge and perceived self-effcacy in caring for older people at the risk of dementia in Bangkok.
Design: Two-group quasi-experimental research with a pretest and a posttest.
Methodology: Fifty-eight public health volunteers in Bangkok were recruited from different communities chosen by means of simple random sampling. The volunteers were then equally assigned to an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group participated in the competency development programme for public health volunteers for 8 weeks, while the control group was given documentary materials on cognitive impairment screening and on caring methods for people at the risk of dementia. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, a dementia knowledge assessment questionnaire, and a perceived self-effcacy assessment questionnaire focusing on caring for older people at the risk of dementia.
The data were analysed using descriptive statistics (namely, frequency, percentage, mean and standard deviation), comparative paired t-test, and independent t-test.
Results: The experimental group’s mean posttest scores on knowledge and perceived self-effcacy were signifcantly higher than their pretest scores (p < .001, p < .001), and signifcantly higher than the control group’s scores (p < .001, p = .024).
Recommendations: It is suggested that this programme be used to improve public health volunteers’ knowledge and perceived self-effcacy in screening and caring for older community members at the risk of dementia.
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