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Dementia Care Excellence Transformation Program 

Dementia care is not simply a clinical service — it is a culture. The Dementia Care Excellence Transformation Program is a 12-week immersive development initiative designed to elevate your dementia unit from task-driven care to relationship-centered excellence. Through on-site intensive training and structured virtual leadership support, this program strengthens team confidence, reduces behavioral incidents, enhances resident quality of life, and supports regulatory compliance. This program reflects Nurse Leadership Solutions’ belief that a solid, engaged team of compassionate caregivers is the foundation of extraordinary senior care. 

Program Structure Overview

Phase 1: On-Site Intensive Development 

6 Weeks | 3 Days Per Week On-Site 

Hands-on training, live coaching, environmental assessment, and operational restructuring. 

Phase 2: Virtual Leadership Support 

6 Weeks | Weekly Coaching Sessions 

Data review, case consultation, culture reinforcement, and sustainability planning. 

Phase 1: On-Site Development (Weeks 1–6) 

Week 1 – Dementia Care Culture, Assessment and Strategic Alignment 

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  • Establish leadership alignment and program expectations 

  • Engage staff across all shifts to foster early buy-in 

  • Assess current dementia care practices and team dynamics 

  • Complete a structured SWOT analysis of the dementia unit 

  • Identify opportunities for immediate improvement 

  • Assess schedule and hiring needs 

  • Develop a 45-day strategic roadmap for implementation  

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Outcome: Cultural alignment, strategic roadmap and shared understanding of dementia care philosophy 

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Week 2 – Education, Communication & Behavioral Mastery 

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  • Provide education based on needs identified on week 1 

  • Complete life story tools on staff and residents 

  • Initiate training on behavioral management, validation therapy, deescalation 

  • Initiate strategic plan agreed upon by leadership and dementia care team 

  • Review staffing needs/scheduling as needed  

  • Create engagement needs list/purchase as needed based on life stories 

  • Create enhanced dining practices for dementia care residents 

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Outcome: Standardize life story collection, implement engagement tactics and improved staff confidence in dementia care including behavioral deescalation  

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Week 3 – Environmental & Sensory Optimization 

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  • Environmental audit for safety, sensory programming and maximizing spaces specific to dementia care 

  • Continue training on specific residents  

  • Meet with staff on progress 

  • Set up engagement areas  

  • Meet with leadership in determining best practices that align with expectations 

  • Identify a branding name for dementia units 

  • Make recommendations for collateral  

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Outcome: A therapeutic unit environment that reduces triggers, future plans for branding corporate wide recommendations 

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Week 4 – Engagement, ADLs & Dining Excellence 

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  • Failure-free activity programming 

  • Review dining practices for further recommendations 

  • Review bathing and personal hygiene educational needs 

  • Review schedule and further hiring needs  

  • Review strategic roadmap for progress and modifications 

  • Setup ongoing training program 

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Outcome: Improved resident participation and dignity preservation. Initiate ensuring future success through train the trainer, on-going education and ensuring buy in of staff  

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Week 5 – Family Partnership & Education 

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  • Disease progression education provided to family  

  • Family communication frameworks 

  • Managing difficult conversations 

  • Dementia-focused family council strategies 

  • Identify expert for family to contact 

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Outcome: Increased family trust and satisfaction 

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Week 6 – Sustainability & Alignment 

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  • Dementia Unit Scorecard development 

  • 90-Day Sustainability Action Plan 

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Outcome: Measurable systems that maintain excellence beyond training 

Phase 2: Virtual Support & Leadership Coaching (Weeks 7–12) 

Weekly 60-minute structured sessions including: 

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  • Review PCC documentation for falls, behaviors and psychotropic use  

  • Make recommendations on documented events 

  • Review activities and engagement 

  • Review staffing needs to maintain program 

  • Celebrate successes  

  • Review sustainability plan  

  • Update leadership with successes and areas of opportunity 

Return on Investment (ROI)

The Dementia Care Excellence Transformation Program is designed to generate measurable operational and financial impact. 

Even modest improvements in key performance areas can significantly exceed the program investment. 

Potential Financial Impact Areas 

1. Reduced Staff Turnover 


The average cost of replacing one frontline caregiver can range from $3,000–$5,000 or more when factoring recruitment, onboarding, overtime, and training costs. 
Reducing turnover by even 4–5 team members annually can offset a substantial portion of this program investment. 

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2. Decreased Behavioral Incidents 


Improved de-escalation and engagement strategies can reduce: 

  • Staff injuries 

  • Overtime costs 

  • Incident investigations 

  • Risk exposure 

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3. Psychotropic Medication Reduction 


Strengthening non-pharmacological interventions improves regulatory compliance and reduces survey risk related to unnecessary medication use. 

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4. Fall Reduction & Risk Mitigation 


Even one avoided fall with injury can prevent: 

  • Hospitalization costs 

  • Family dissatisfaction 

  • Liability exposure 

  • Negative survey findings 

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5. Improved Family Satisfaction & Reputation 


Higher satisfaction improves: 

  • Occupancy stability 

  • Word-of-mouth referrals 

  • Online reviews 

  • Community reputation 

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6. Survey Preparedness & Deficiency Prevention 


Avoiding one significant citation can protect: 

  • Plan of correction workload 

  • Public reporting scores 

  • Monetary penalties  

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Strategic Value 

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This program is not simply education. 
It is culture transformation, leadership development, and operational alignment. 

The long-term impact includes: 

  • Stronger team confidence 

  • Improved morale and retention 

  • Consistent dementia-specific systems 

  • Measurable quality improvements 

  • Sustainable leadership accountability 

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The investment is structured to create lasting operational return well beyond the 12-week engagement. 

Why Nurse Leadership Solutions?

Tina Gotsch brings 30 years of senior care leadership experience, including Director of Nursing, Administrator, Regional Operations Director, and award-winning team leadership specifically in dementia care.  

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Her approach blends: 

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  • Clinical expertise 

  • Operational strategy 

  • Culture transformation 

  • Team empowerment 

  • Practical, sustainable systems 

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This is not lecture-based training. 
This is hands-on dementia care development within your community. 

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