Authors (including presenting author) :
Chao M C (1), Lam S H (1), Fung Y S (1), Cheung T Y (1)
Affiliation :
(1) Occupational Therapy Department, Tuen Mun Hospital, New Territories West Cluster, Hospital Authority
Introduction :
Caring elders with dementia especially those with Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) are challenging and often resort to undesired or premature institutionalized care with deprived quality of life for the elders and tremendous emotional distress for their carers while posing enormous cost to the healthcare system.
Clinical application of assistive technology to enhance patient’s functional independence, community living skills and home safety has been one of the core services provided by Occupational Therapists. However, speaking of use of assistive technology for dementia care, particularly those for tackling BPSD and risky behaviors had been scarce. With advancement in gerontechnology, many assistive devices are now available as non-pharmaceutical remedy for dementia care. Nevertheless, inadequate accessibility, guidance and monitoring hinder the application.
With funding support from Patient Empowerment Programme 2020-2021 under New Territories West Cluster Community Partnership Committee, Occupational Therapy Department of Tuen Mun Hospital developed the “Memory Inspiration Network for Dementia (MIND)” programme in 2020 which serves as an unprecedented hub for expertise consultation, gerontechnological aids prescription, community resources sharing and carer education in dementia and home safety management by Occupational Therapists.
Objectives :
This pilot service enhancement programme aims at investigating the effectiveness of MIND programme in resolving predefined risky behaviors of elders with dementia and in relieving carer distress with gerontechnology.
Methodology :
A prospective pretest-posttest quasi experimental design with convenience sampling was adopted for outcome measures in this programme. The programme included consultation by Occupational Therapist on assistive devices for risky behaviors (e.g. home monitoring systems, GPS tracking device, object finder), group education and follow-up by telecare and/or home visit. Aids suppliers/manufacturers’ input would be solicited if necessary. Outcome measures with standardized assessments and tailor-made questionnaires were retrieved from elders and their carers.
Result & Outcome :
A total of eight elders and their carers completed phase 1 of this programme. All demonstrated enhanced understanding to dementia and home safety management, relieved carer distress (Z=2.383, p=0.017) and reduced got-lost incidence (Z=2.121, p=0.034), household fire accidents (Z=2.041, p=0.041) and medication adherence clumsiness (Z=2.023, p=0.043).
This structured collaborated programme made gerontechnology more accessible and empowered elders and their carers to better apply gerontechnology in home care and community living, enhancing their functional independence, community reintegration in a safe and optimal way for ageing in place, meanwhile minimizing impact to the healthcare system.
