Dataset Information

Six-Month Effectiveness of Remote Activity Monitoring for Persons Living With Dementia and Their Family Caregivers: An Experimental Mixed Methods Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background and objectives

This study aimed to evaluate if and how remote activity monitoring (RAM) improves caregiver outcomes for family members providing care for persons living with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia (ADRD).

Research design and methods

We conducted an embedded experimental mixed methods study of 132 persons living with ADRD and their family caregivers (n = 64 randomly assigned to RAM treatment condition). In addition to baseline and 6-month quantitative survey data on context of care, primary objective stressors, resources, self-efficacy/competence, and distress collected from caregivers, 6-month RAM review checklists contained open-ended, qualitative information on perceived acceptability of the technology.

Results

The RAM system did not exert statistically significant effects on caregiving outcomes over a 6-month period. However, qualitative analyses identified several potential moderators of RAM technology effectiveness that were subsequently tested in post-hoc repeated measures analyses of variance. Caregivers who utilized RAM technology and cared for relatives with: (a) less severe cognitive impairment; and (b) difficulty navigating around the home were more likely to indicate statistically significant increases in competence and self-efficacy, respectively.

Discussion and implications

We found that the early months spent calibrating and modifying RAM are potentially challenging for families, which may prevent this technology from improving caregiving outcomes during initial months of use. Remote activity monitoring may work optimally for caregivers of persons living with ADRD in specific situations (e.g., earlier stages of dementia; wandering risk), which suggests the need for appropriate needs assessments that can better target such innovations.

SUBMITTER: Gaugler JE

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6326253 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Six-Month Effectiveness of Remote Activity Monitoring for Persons Living With Dementia and Their Family Caregivers: An Experimental Mixed Methods Study.

Gaugler Joseph E JE Zmora Rachel R Mitchell Lauren L LL Finlay Jessica M JM Peterson Colleen M CM McCarron Hayley H Jutkowitz Eric E

The Gerontologist 20190101 1

<h4>Background and objectives</h4>This study aimed to evaluate if and how remote activity monitoring (RAM) improves caregiver outcomes for family members providing care for persons living with Alzheimer's disease or a related dementia (ADRD).<h4>Research design and methods</h4>We conducted an embedded experimental mixed methods study of 132 persons living with ADRD and their family caregivers (n = 64 randomly assigned to RAM treatment condition). In addition to baseline and 6-month quantitative ...[more]

PMID: 29982413

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Project description:BackgroundEstimates suggest that 6.2 million Americans aged ≥65 years are living with Alzheimer dementia in 2021, and by 2060, this number could more than double to 13.8 million. As a result, public health officials anticipate a greater need for caregivers of persons with Alzheimer disease or related dementia and support resources for both people living with dementia and their caregivers. Despite the growing need for dementia caregiver support services, there is a lack of consensus regarding how to tailor these services to best meet the heterogeneous needs of individual caregivers. To fill this gap, Care to Plan (CtP), a web-based tool for caregivers of people living with dementia, was developed to provide tailored support recommendations to dementia caregivers.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to formally explore the feasibility, acceptability, and utility of CtP for 20 family members of people living with dementia within a health system over a 1-month time period using a mixed methods parallel convergent design.MethodsA moderately sized health system in the mid-Atlantic region was selected as the site for CtP implementation, where 20 caregivers who were family members of people living with dementia were enrolled. The web-based CtP tool was used by caregivers and facilitated by a health care professional (ie, a senior care navigator [SCN]). Caregivers were given a 21-item review checklist to assess barriers and facilitators associated with reviewing CtP with an SCN. Following the 21-item review checklist, semistructured telephone interviews, which included 18 open-ended questions, focused on the facilitators of and barriers to CtP implementation and recommendations for future implementation.ResultsQuantitative results suggested that 85% (17/20) of caregivers indicated that CtP was helpful and 90% (18/20) would recommend CtP to someone in a similar situation. The qualitative analysis identified 4 themes regarding facilitators of and barriers to implementation: caregiver factors, SCN factors, CtP tool system factors, and recommendations and resources factors.ConclusionsCtP was found to be not only feasible but also a valuable tool for caregivers seeking resources for themselves and their people living with dementia. Long-term evaluation findings aim to generate results on how CtP can be integrated into care plans for caregivers and how SCNs can provide additional support for caregivers of people living with dementia over an extended period.

Dataset Information

Six-Month Effectiveness of Remote Activity Monitoring for Persons Living With Dementia and Their Family Caregivers: An Experimental Mixed Methods Study.

Background and objectives

Research design and methods

Results

Discussion and implications

Publications

Six-Month Effectiveness of Remote Activity Monitoring for Persons Living With Dementia and Their Family Caregivers: An Experimental Mixed Methods Study.

Similar Datasets

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