You are here

  1. Home
  2. Carrera, F.
  3. Patient and caregiver outcomes at the integrated memory care clinic

Patient and caregiver outcomes at the integrated memory care clinic

• Caregivers' distress relative to their persons' delusions decreased significantly. • Caregivers' distress relative to their persons' anxiety decreased significantly. • Severity of persons' living with dementia delusions decreased significantly. • Severity of persons' living with dementia depression decreased significantly. • Total symptom severity for persons living with dementia decreased significantly.

The purpose of this longitudinal cohort study was to explore the outcomes of persons living with dementia (PLWD) and their caregivers during their first 9 months at the Integrated Memory Care Clinic (IMCC). IMCC advanced practice registered nurses provide dementia care and primary care simultaneously and continuously to PLWD until institutionalization. Changes were examined in caregivers' psychological well-being (perceived stress, depressive symptoms, caregiver burden, and anxiety) and health status and in PLWDs' quality of life and neuropsychiatric symptoms. Data were collected at baseline, then 3 and 6 months post-baseline. Forty-two caregivers completed all 3 assessments. Most variables remained unchanged. Statistically significant improvements in 5 sub-scales of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory were observed: caregivers' distress regarding their PLWDs' delusions and anxiety, and PLWDs' severity of delusions, depression, and total symptom severity. Further testing of the IMCC is required, including in quasi-experimental studies, to determine its efficacy.

Access source material through DOI

Key Information

Type of Reference
Jour
Type of Work
Journal article
Publisher
Elsevier
ISBN/ISSN
0197-4572
Publication Year
2020
Issue Number
6
Journal Titles
Geriatric Nursing
Volume Number
41
Start Page
761
End Page
768