When were the first DESMOND Educators trained?

Following the development of the first DESMOND newly diagnosed Educator curriculum and resources in the summer of 2003, the development team held their first Educator training event in November 2003 at The George Hotel in Stamford, Lincolnshire.  

Welcome to Desmond Firsts, where we explore DESMOND’s firsts and the evolution of our programmes over the coming months. The Educators that attended this training went on to deliver the pilot patient group sessions, becoming some of the first-ever accredited DESMOND Educators. It was these Educators who later became the first DESMOND National Trainers and Assessors; initially training healthcare professionals from across the UK to deliver the DESMOND newly diagnosed programme as part of the randomised controlled trial.  

Some of the RCT Educators then also joined the national training and assessment team and in September 2006 began offering training as part of the national roll-out.  

Since then, the training and assessment team has evolved, much like the training itself. Click here to look back on our article about the training team from June 2021 to find out a bit more about what a day in the life of a DESMOND Trainer looks like. Also, click here to find out more about the newest member of our team.