Education Program for Enhancing Healthcare Students' Attitudes Toward People Living With Dementia

Participants in this study will be healthcare students at an Indonesian university (i.e., nursing students, public health students, etc.) enrolled in the semesters and courses designated for implementation of this educational program. For example, nursing students at Airlangga University will be among students in their fifth semester. Prospective participants will be given new ID numbers to ensure that their student ID numbers are undetected. The protocol for this study was reviewed and approved by an ethical committee of the Faculty of Nursing at Airlangga University.

Regarding recruitment, all candidate participants will be identified from the university's e-learning portal data. Students registered in the courses selected for implementation of this education program will have their data recorded at the beginning of the odd semester for the 2023/2024 academic year. Potentially eligible candidates will receive comprehensive study information and an invitation to participate.

The courses coordinator and Principal Investigator (PI) will explain the Semester Learning Plan and curriculum for the selected courses at the beginning of the semester. An overview of the research session's implementation will be presented, while detailed research procedures will be explained shortly before research is undertaken. An announcement regarding implementation of the research will be made approximately one week in advance, and recruitment will be carried out through Google Forms. Candidate participants will receive new IDs for this study and information about the schedule and location of the educational program through a class announcement three days prior.

On the intervention date, candidate participants will be present at the designated location and sign an attendance sheet using their new IDs. The PI will explain all stages of the study and reiterate regarding participants' freedom to withdraw at any time. The recruitment of study participants will not involve coercion. Students who choose not to participate in this study will still receive regular dementia-related materials through the university's e-learning portal, but they will not receive the game-based education program. Students who agree to participate in the study will provide informed consent. Further, participants in the educational program will complete a questionnaire before and after its implementation.