In Sweden, about 140 000 persons have dementia. During the last years knowledge about dementia diseases and the consequences of the symptoms have increased. With better assessment, a person with dementia can get a diagnosis earlier.
There are now drugs that delay symptoms which means that a person with dementia can stay at home and be more active and self-reliant in daily life longer. However, there is a need of new technology (assistive products) which can assist and support them in different situations.
The national project "Technology and Dementia – development work, create methods and increase the competence" aimed to increase the use of new technology by persons with dementia and their relatives. The technology used helped persons with dementia to be more active, self-reliant, confident and feel more free in their daily life. The project consisted of a number of methods and activities such as:
- Two national centres with special cutting-edge competence from the area of dementia and new technology were developed. At these centres persons with dementia and their relatives tested assistive technology in a systematic way. Based on these studies methods and tools for user’s assessment were developed.
- Cost-benefit analyses were carried out for various applications of assistive technology.
- Rules and practices for prescribing cognitive assistive technology were evaluated.
- New products were tested and evaluated in various practical situations.
This development project on the knowledge and use of new technology for persons with dementia ran from 2005 to 2008 and was financed by the Swedish Inheritance Fund.
For more information:
Ingela Månsson
project coordinator
ingela.mansson@hi.se