Raising nursing student awareness of how it feels to have dementia with the use of 360º video

Abstract

Objective: This paper aims to look at raising nursing student awareness of how it feels to have dementia through the use of 360-degree video. We were particularly interested in raising awareness amongst nursing students perceptions of the behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia to promote holistic care provision guided by an empathetic understanding of how it feels to have dementia.

Methods: We used a mixed methods approach to investigate nursing students’ awareness of how it feels to have dementia through the use of the 360-degree videos originally developed for a creative new media arts-exhibit at Toronto Rehabilitation Institute for raising dementia awareness. Data were collected quantitatively and qualitatively with thematic and content analyses. A focus group was conducted to explore participants’ awareness of how it feels to have dementia by viewing the 360-degree video, empathy towards people with dementia, and knowledge of dementia.

Results: The 360-degree video is an arts-based knowledge-translation strategy that was used to raise nursing students’ awareness on behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia. While the majority of the participants had some levels of awareness and understanding of dementia prior to the viewing of 360-degree video, they were nonetheless challenged by the content of the 360-degree video that led to new perspectives on dementia.

Conclusions: The three themes identified in the thematic analysis of the focus group are understanding dementia from a new perspective, embodiment of dementia experience, and self-reflection and practice changes. These themes reflect the usefulness of 360-degree video as an arts-based knowledge translation strategy in raising dementia awareness in nursing students.