The carer’s world: An interactive reusable learning object

Abstract

Visual and interactive environments offer unique opportunities for emotive and immersive experiences related to health. Examples concerning Alzheimer’s include the film Ex memoria, documentaries like Malcolm and Barbara: Love’s farewell and the Remember us virtual exhibit within Second life. In 2006, the School of Health and Social Care (HSC) began experimenting with integrating the methods and themes of Lifeworld with Hypertext narrative into an educational resource. This process led to the development of a reusable learning object — The carer’s world — designed to give users greater knowledge about, and insight into, the challenges of caring for people with Alzheimer’s. This article describes the context, processes and influences of its creation and a discussion of how this type of development might increase knowledge and understanding around the issues of a carer’s world and also provide a tool for embedding into the higher educational health curriculum.