Assessing Assistive Technology Outcomes with Dementia

Purpose This article presents a review of the available evaluation of quality of life (QOL) outcomes as a result of assistive technology (AT) interaction among older adults with cognitive impairment and the further development of an outcome assessment framework specific to this area of research. The framework is based on a previous version first proposed by the authors in 20101 and results derived from working on the ISISEMD-project2,3. Method A literature review compiled relevant AT-outcomes assessments specific to QOL-results of dementia interventions, describing strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore, during the course of the ISISEMD-trials, issues arose that highlighted the lack of appropriate assessments for evaluating QOL in dementia with AT-interventions. This needed to be addressed in order to further develop the fields of AT-outcomes measurement, QOL-assessment, and dementia care. The original framework, describing the development and application of an electronic QOL-assessment format incorporating the AT-enhanced environment for those with dementia, aims to close the variance between AT-use and AT-outcomes with empirical demonstration. Results & Discussion Results include: (i) Assessment of current outcomes measurement tools and methods; (ii) Analysis of the issues involved in AT-outcomes measurement; and (iii) Description of the framework and its application for dementia AT-outcomes assessment. There is a significant lack of appropriate measurement tools that examine QOLoutcomes as a result of AT-interaction in dementia care. Through the use of the proposed framework, researchers and clinicians can better determine which ATs will stimulate the desired intervention outcomes as well as measure their effectiveness. This has implications for dementia care, technology development, socioeconomic benefits and policy.