Abstract

To provide high quality dementia care, professionals need to be both knowledgeable about dementia and skilled in the provision of care. This book is an introductory reference guide that will help students, professionals and practitioners develop their skills and expertise to better respond to the needs of people with dementia. It sets out information and advice on essential topics, research and evidence-based practice within dementia care in a clear, sensible way.

Based on the standard course structure for higher and further dementia education, this wide-ranging textbook covers topics including dementia diagnosis, person-centred care and law, ethics and safeguarding. The new go-to book for the dementia curriculum, it is an invaluable tool for anyone wishing to improve the required core skills and values needed to care for those affected by dementia.

Dr Shibley Rahman graduated in neuroscience and medicine from Cambridge University. There he also completed his PhD in frontotemporal dementia, commencing a lifelong interest in the timely diagnosis of dementia. He also trained to postgraduate level in medicine, law and business. Shibley speaks regularly about dementia diagnosis and post-diagnostic care, researches wellbeing and advocates rights-based approaches. He is the author of Living Better with Dementia: Good Practice and Innovation for the Future, also published by JKP.

Professor Rob Howard is Professor of Old Age Psychiatry at the Division of Psychiatry at University College London.

This is a book that is refreshingly centred on meeting the needs of people with dementia. It provides the technical background information that clinicians need whilst not losing sight of the purpose of caring.
Prof Alison Leary, PhD FRCN FQNI, Chair of Healthcare & Workforce Modelling
It is a wonderfully comprehensive book, which I would confidently recommend to every Old Age Psychiatry trainee and Dementia health care professional. Chapters 4,5 and the Palliative care chapter were particularly inspiring to me and hopefully to all health care professionals who read it.
Dr Karel Wildschut, Cambridge and Peterborough Foundation NHS Trust
Dr Rahman and Professor Howard provide an engaging and eloquent guide to dementia care in their text. In my opinion, the text is a must-read for those who are supporting or caring for people living with dementia, both in a professional or personal capacity. Sui generis.
Dr Gary Mitchell, Lecturer, Queen’s University Belfast
Rahman and Howard's excellent primer on the essentials of dementia absolutely lives up to the promise of its subtitle: "Everything you really need to know." Though its ambition is huge - to transform they way society thinks and acts about dementia by improving understanding and awareness among professionals and the public alike - it delivers with aplomb. The authors write with great clarity and succinctness, covering every aspect of good dementia care from ethics and law to best evidence-based care and, above all, treating patients with respect and dignity. An excellent read for doctors, nurses, carers and the interested public.
Dr Rachel Clarke, speciality doctor in palliative medicine
Essential of Dementia fills a much needed gap in the literature for professionals working with people with dementia, but also for those who care for friends or relatives with the condition, and even those who have the diagnosis themselves. Written in accessible language, all aspects of the condition are considered, ranging from complex brain pathology to the practicalities of understanding why people with dementia may respond in certain ways. The book can be read from start to finish, but each chapter also acts as a stand-alone guide to the subject covered. I would recommend this for healthcare professionals from any setting or background who work with people with dementia, and it should be mandated reading for medical students. I would also recommend it for carers of those with dementia who want to understand more about the condition.
Dr Zoe Wyrko, Consultant Physician, University Hospital Birmingham
Dr Shibley Rahman is a stalwart in the field of dementia care and few others have managed to make such consistent and important contributions. In this book, together with Professor Robert Howard, Dr Rahman does set out to provide the 'everything you ever needed to know' guide for supporting people living with a dementia. With the 'Dementia Core Skills Education and Training Framework' as a structure for the book, Rahman and Howard take the reader on a practical and integrated person-centred journey of discovery. The book is a must read for anyone who works with people living with a dementia and its accessible format can only help in improving their lives.
Professor Brendan McCormack, Head of the Division of Nursing, Associate Director Centre for Person-centred Practice Research, Queen Margaret University