JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

The increasing rate of dementia and high health and social care costs call for effective measures to improve public health and enhance the wellbeing of people living with dementia and their relational networks. Most post diagnostic services focus on the condition and the person with dementia with limited attention to the spouse or partner caregiver. The key focus of the study is to develop a self-management guide for couples where one partner has a diagnosis of dementia. This couple self-management guide is delivered in the form of an app, DemPower. The contents of the app were organized into four main themes, ‘Home and Neighbourhood’, ‘Activities and Relationship’, ‘Meeting, Sharing and Caring’ ‘Communication and Emotions’. Each of these themes included a series of videos and activities for couples to do together.

Objective:

The study aimed to investigate the feasibility and acceptability of DemPower.

Methods:

The study used a non-randomized feasibility design. The study recruited 25 couples in the United Kingdom and 19 couples in Sweden. We aimed to complete the app within three months and collected usage data from the devices at the end of the study. Outcome measures were obtained at baseline and post intervention.

Results:

21 couples completed the study (48%). Of these, 18 (86%) completed all parts of the app and each couple spent an average of 8hrs on the app during the study period. Among the four themes, ‘Home and Neighbourhood’ averaged 250 visits, ‘Activities and Relationship’ average 174 visits, ‘Meeting, Sharing and Caring’ average 160 and ‘Communication and Emotions’ received average 122 visits. Over the course of the study, participants visited suggested activities pages more frequently (average 95) than the core contents pages displaying section specific introductory videos (average 71) or videos of couples (average 69), for example taking pictures, physical exercise, talking to each other, walking, music and home adaptation checklist.

Conclusions:

The findings suggest that the DemPower app is a useful resource for couples where one partner has a dementia and that its implementation requires the support of memory clinics to reach couples at early diagnosis. Clinical Trial: International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 10122979; http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN10122979 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/70rB1iWYI)