Memory Matters A Mobile Aid to Stimulate Reminiscing in Persons with Memory Loss

DESCRIPTION provided by applicant This Phase II SBIR project will augment and investigate a digital game that was designed and successfully tested during a Phase I trial in a long term care facility The game called Memory Matters MM is designed to trigger reminiscing by persons with mild to moderate dementia related memory loss often caused by Alzheimerandapos s Disease by immersing these individuals in game content reflecting the cultural and historical facets of their youth and early adulthood The MM digital game brings together two key elements which are key to enhancing communication and interaction with people living with mild to moderate dementia reminiscence triggers and game playing Game embedded content including pictures and music serves as strong memory triggers leading to a range of interaction and often a stream of memories spreading out from the initial topic Playing games and having fun helps relaxation and interaction and avoids the stress of many cognitive activities which put pressure on the person with dementia Having a rich bank of memory triggers adds interest and takes the pressure off caregivers and family members to come up with ideas and prompts to engage in conversation from their own experience and knowledge The game often opens up the possibility for the person living with dementia to `teachandapos the caregiver or family member about something that is outside their experience building esteem and a sense of purpose Digital games offer a novel approach to promote improvements in mood social interaction cognitive stimulation and quality of life for persons with dementia related memory loss This Phase II SBIR will evaluate the efficacy of MM in offering improvements in mood social interaction cognitive stimulation and quality of life to persons with memory loss who will use th game over a month period Evaluation will be done using semi structured interviews and participant observation data collected on persons with mild to moderate dementia related memory loss their family caregivers and professional care providers via an embedded randomized controlled evaluation PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE Memory loss is a significant problem for a growing number of Americans An estimated million Americans of all ages have Alzheimerandapos s Disease AD in This includes an estimated million people age and older Longer life spans and aging baby boomers will cause this number increase dramatically in the years ahead People with memory loss face considerable challenges including a decrease in their ability to communicate along with increased emotional distress Caregivers and family also experience the negative impact of the relativeandapos s inability to recollect and communicate and as a result also experience stress The stress associated with care provision often negatively influences family membersandapos ability to provide care and support For people with AD and other dementias aggregate payments for health care long term care and hospice are projected to increase from $ billion in to $ trillion in in dollars