Establishment and Effectiveness of a Community-Based Long-Term Care Model for Elderly Persons with Dementia

The illness course and symptoms of dementia is usually very long and characterized with behavioral, psychological and physical changes. Family caregivers’ stresses change during the illness trajectory as well. Thus, the needs of the elderly persons with dementia and their family caregivers differ in different stage of dementia, and the services they require are multidimensional. According to our previous 2-year study, behavioral problem management and service utilization were found to be the most difficult and least prepared caregiving activities and the family caregiver’s needs for assistance of these two caregiving activities differed in different stage of dementia. This proposed research project will continue our previous study to further develop a community care management program for elderly persons with dementia and their family and will use an action research approach to examine its effectiveness. In the first year, we will conduct a survey in the selected community to explore the behavior problems, management types and needed services of the family caregivers in different stage of illness trajectory. The results of this survey will serve as a base for development of the community care management program. In the second year, we will use the developed care management program to intervene with elderly persons who are diagnosed as having dementia and their family caregivers in the community. This care management program will design to establish networks of care resources and to provide integrated and continuous services. In the third year, we will conduct an evaluation study to further examine the effectiveness of this care management program. The results of this study will serve as a base for future health and social policies, and a community care model for elderly persons with dementia and their families in Taiwan.

Project ID:PF9902-0283
External Project ID:NSC97-2420-H182-002-MY3