An Innovative Caregiver Tool to Assess and Manage Behavioral Symptoms of Dementia

Inclusion Criteria:

General

• Age 21 years or older
• Ability to read, speak and understand English
• Home location within 50 miles of the study site Caregivers (CG)
• Active primary caregiver of a Person with Dementia (PwD) for at least 6 months and planning to remain the primary caregiver for the next 2 months
• Currently living with the PwD
• CG plans to live in the area for the duration of the study
• Is familiar and comfortable utilizing technology (e.g. computers, tablets, the internet)

Persons with Dementia (PwD)

• CG reports that the PwD exhibits at least one or more behavioral symptoms (any behavior at any frequency)
• PwD receiving psychotropic medication or cognitive enhancers will not be excluded.
• If PwD is on any of four classes of psychotropic medications (antidepressant, benzodiazepines, antipsychotic, or anti-convulsant) or an anti-dementia medication (memantine or a cholinesterase inhibitor), we will require that he/she have been on a stable dose for 60 days prior to enrollment (typical time frame in clinical trials) to minimize possible confounding effects of concomitant medications.
• Clinical diagnosis of dementia (any type) or a score of less than 24 on the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE)

Exclusion Criteria:

General

• Inability to read, speak or understand English
• Home location greater than 50 miles from the study site
• Lack of regular access to a telephone Caregivers (CG)
• Reading literacy of less than 6th grade
• Visual impairment to the extent of prohibiting interaction with the tool
• Hearing impairment sufficient to prohibit telephone communication
• Other self-identified mental or physical health issues that would distinctly interfere with the ability to reasonably test the tool or complete behavioral interventions (e.g. substance use disorder, schizophrenia, severe mobility issues)
• Hospitalized more than 3 times in the past year
• Participating in another study to help caregivers care for the person with dementia.

Persons with Dementia (PwD)

• At a terminal phase of illness, unable to respond to the environment or with a life expectancy less than 6 months
• Active suicide risk
• Imminent placement to nursing home (within the next 60 days)
• Hospitalized more than 3 times in the past year
• Currently in another study testing a medication to control behavioral symptoms