Aim To investigate the effects of the Staff Training for Assisted Living Residences administered to formal caregivers of older adults with behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia in the institutional environment. Methods The project was developed in two long‐term care institutions in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, with 25 formal caregivers and 46 older adults with dementia. The training was carried out over 6 weeks. Evaluations were carried out with the caregivers and the elderly residents, using specific instruments to evaluate different domains (demographic data, etiological diagnoses of dementia, severity of dementia, global cognition, functional performance, quality of life, behavior, burden of caregiver, depression and anxiety). The total time for data collection was 6 months. Results A significant improvement in behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia, as assessed by the Neuropsychiatric Inventory, was observed (P < 0.008), with no changes in the other indexes. No significant changes were observed in parameters related to caregivers. Conclusions The Staff Training for Assisted Living Residences protocol was effective in reducing neuropsychiatric symptoms in dementia patients, and might be a feasible and positive strategy to train formal caregivers in long‐term care institutions in Brazil. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2017; 17: 449–455.