A review of the role of assistive technology for people with dementia in the hours of darkness

Abstract

Assistive Technology (AT) has been utilized to support people with dementia (PwD) and their carers in the home. Such support can extend the time that PwD can remain safely at home and reduce the burden on the tertiary healthcare sector. Technology can assist people in the hours of darkness as well as during the day. The objective of this literature review is to evaluate reported healthcare technologies appropriate to night time care. This paper summarises and categorises the current evidence base. In all, 131 abstracts were returned from a database search, yielding fifty four relevant papers which were considered in detail. While night-time specific studies identified very few papers (4 papers, 7%), most of the more general AT findings could be adopted to benefit night-time assistance. Studies have used technology for prompting and reminding as loss of time and forgetfulness are major problems; for monitoring daily activities in a sensor enriched environment and utilised location aware technologies to provide information to enhance safety. Technology also supports a range of therapies to alleviate symptoms. Therapies include the delivery of music and familial pictures for reminiscing, the use of light therapy to enhance wellbeing and the provision of mental tasks to stimulate the brain and maintain activity levels.

SenseCam intervention based on Cognitive Stimulation Therapy framework for Early-Stage Dementia

“…Monitoring and safety technologies used in dementia care include GPS systems which enable tracking of the person with dementia and alerting the carer if safe boundaries are crossed. Bed Occupancy Sensors are also popular in care settings, allowing monitoring patients by nursing staff [18].…”

Indicators of perceived useful dementia care assistive technology: Caregivers' perspectives

“…3,4 It has been suggested that AT devices offering prompting, reminding and monitoring assistance can function as live-in caregivers in the home-care environment. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] However, several factors might influence the use of AT devices. 6 These include accessibility, cost, ethical considerations, the limited and inconsistent evidence that supports AT's benefits, and the low level of perceived usefulness.…”

Participatory Research to Design a Novel Telehealth System to Support the Night-Time Needs of People with Dementia: NOCTURNAL

“…This review highlighted a need for more research that focuses on the unique nighttime needs of people with dementia living in their own home. In addition the authors postulated that there is the potential to use technology as a therapeutic intervention in addition to the more traditional applications [22]. In addition Kujala undertook a review exploring the evidence base for user involvement in technology design.…”