Assistive technology

Purpose: Providing care to older adults using assistive technology can be challenging for family caregivers. To inform the development of an Internet-based intervention, this study aimed to identify older assistive technology users and family caregivers’ needs related to assistive technology procurement, and to explore how to offer remote support through an Internet-based intervention.

People with dementia and family carers often use calendars to support time orientation to maintain routine. However, little is known about the use of calendars as a compensatory strategy. This study examines the experience and practicalities of using calendar reminders from the perspective of people with dementia and family carers. Six dyads were recruited and interviewed at home. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to develop a narrative interpreted from an occupational therapy perspective. The themes were reflected on during two subsequent focus groups.

Background: Dementia is one of the greatest health and care priorities globally. Caring for persons with dementia is a challenge and often leads to negative psychological, physiological and financial consequences for informal carers (family members or friends). Many informal carers experience moderate to severe levels of burden. Advances in technology have the potential to assist persons with dementia and their carers, through assistive technology (AT) devices such as electronic medication dispensers, robotic devices and motion detectors.

BACKGROUND: The principal aim of this study was to investigate whether a caregiver-inclusive assistive technology intervention improved older care recipients' functional autonomy and decreased the perceived burden of their family caregivers compared to customary care. METHODS: The study was a single-blind, mixed-methods, randomized controlled trial with baseline data collection and follow-ups at six, 22-, and 58-weeks after baseline evaluation, which was prospectively registered (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01640470. Registered 11/21/2011).

Background: People with dementia and their family caregivers may benefit from assistive technology (AT), but knowledge is scarce about family carers’ (FC) experiences and involvement in the use of AT in everyday life. Aim: To examine the FC roles and experiences with AT as means of supporting people with young onset-dementia (YOD). Method: Qualitative interview study with follow-up design.

In the United Kingdom (UK), an ageing population met with the reduction of social care funding has led to reduced support for older people marked with an increased demand on family care-givers. Assistive telecare (AT) devices are viewed as an innovative and effective way to support older people. However, there is limited research which has explored adoption of AT from the perspectives of family care-givers. In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 family care-givers of patients who used the Assistive Telehealth and Telecare service in Cambridgeshire, UK.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine relatives’ perception of an assistive technology intervention aimed at persons with dementia (PwDs) and their relatives, and to examine whether, and how, experiences of the intervention process differed between relatives valuing the intervention to be of high, and relatives perceiving it to be of low significance. Method: A total of 47 relatives of PwDs within the Swedish Technology and Dementia project were interviewed telephonically using a modified version of the Patient perspective on Care and Rehabilitation process instrum

Many people with a cognitive impairment are likely to become lost at some stage of their illness; this can cause great distress to individuals and to their relatives. GPS location equipment has become available recently and has been trialled with a number of families. Although the technology itself is not complicated, it introduces a number of problems including battery management, device selection and returning the individual when they have become lost. A process has been developed to simplify these problems. When it is followed, the outcomes have been positive for all stakeholders.