New study compares dementia care approaches and the impact on caregivers

New research in which different approaches of dementia care for people with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementies are compared, found no significant differences in the patient or caregiver’s behavioral symptoms, either supplied by a health system supplied by a community organization, or as usual care during an 18 -Month period.

However, the dementia care study, also known as D-Care, also showed that healthcare provider self-effectiveness-one measurement of care providers in managing dementia-related challenges and access to support-improved in both the health system and in the community-based care approaches and was assessed higher than with those who received usual care. Higher self -effectiveness was observed within 6 months of providing care and remained consistent during the investigation.

The D-care test is to date the biggest evaluation of different approaches to offer dementia care. Healthcare providers play an essential role in the lives of individuals with dementia, and their ability to control stress and to be confident in their care roles is crucial. Higher self -effectiveness can lead to gaining more resources and keeping people with dementia at home. “

Dr. David Reuben, Archone Professor or Geriatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine to UCLA and the lead researcher of the study

The study will be published on January 29 in the Peer-Reviewed Journal of the American Medical Association (Jama).

Financed by the patient-oriented Outcomes Research Institute and the National Institute on Aging, the D-Care study was the goal of comparing the effectiveness of two established dementia care approaches for each other and with usual care. It consisted of 2,176 people with dementia and their carers and was carried out from June 2019 to August 2023.

The study was led by researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles, with data management and statistics carried out by the Yale Data Coordinating Center and was performed at four clinical locations: Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist, Baylor Scott & White Health, The University of Texas Medical Branch and Geisinger Health. The study was supported by researchers from the Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Cedars-SINAI Medical Center and Rand. Participants were randomly assigned to one of the three groups: Healthcare systems based care provided by dementia care specialists (based on the UCLA Alzheimer and Dementia Care Program), provided for the community-based organization-based care by Zorgadviseurs (Use of Benjamin Rose Institute On Aging Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Care Conultue Care Conulto Program), or usual care.

“The results of the study underline the complexity of dementia care and the challenges in comparing dementia care models in a Real-World setting, especially during the COVID-19 Pandemie,” said Reuben. “Moreover, some advantages of the models may not be fully recorded in the chosen primary and secondary results of the test.” The effects of the interventions on the use of health care are still being processed.

The findings of D-care have important implications for health care systems, medical groups, community organizations, policy makers and insurers who work to improve dementia care. The study suggests that although the health system and the community -based dementia programs may not perform better than routine care in reducing care provider or managing patient behavior, these programs help to help healthcare providers to navigate the challenges of dementia care more effectively.

“These findings remind us that different approaches of dementia care can lead to similar clinical results and can be valuable in particular for institutions participating in the new Medicare that leads an improved dementia experience (guide) program,” said Reuben. “Additional analyzes of D-care will further provide insight into the effectiveness of health system and community-based dementia care.”

The D-CARE study is financed by the patient-controlled Outcomes Research Institute (PCS-2017C1-6534), a non-profit institution and the National Institute on Aging (R01 AG061078). The prices include four clinical test sites. Extra support was offered by the Yale program on Aging/Claude D. Pepper Oudericans Independence Center (P30AG021342), the National Center for Advancing Translational Science (NCATS) part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) (UL1 TR000142), The Mexican health and aging study (R01AG018016), the Utmb Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (OAIC) ​​(P30 AG024832), the Dewey and Cynthia Robertson Funde’s In Insitrics and the Wake Foreeste Geriatrics Center and the Wake Foreestrics Center and the Wake Foreestrics Center and the Forseste Geriatrics Center AG049638).