REIMAGINING LIFE WITH DEMENTIA

Refined Focus Question, Prototyping & Testing

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Refined Focus Question: How can we facilitate a meaningful storytelling activity for high-functioning dementia residents?

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Refined Solution: Storytelling Workshop

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We went to Arbor Hill to gather information about how the residents would respond to music and storytelling. We took a speaker to play 50s and 60s music, category cards to promote stories from their past, famous photos to use as prompts for fictional stories, and craft materials (colored pencils, scissors, clay…) We found that the residents were less interested in organized activities and preferred to just make conversation and tell stories organically. We also noticed how starkly different the personalities in the room were and realized that our final solution would have to be adaptable and not ‘one size fits all’.

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MIT Critique

We partnered with MIT for a joint critique and received the following feedback:

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• Think about people around those with dementia and not just the patients themselves as they all affect each other. For example, if you make it easier for nurses to keep track of patient needs, they can care for the patients in a more personalized and meaningful way.

• Think of people with dementia as complex individuals and do not assume they all want the same thing.

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Pivot – Technology & Communication

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After our critique, we made a significant change in direction. We decided that as most of us want to go into technology-related careers, that we wanted to create a digital product or experience. We felt that the best way to maximize the potential of a digital solution was to focus on communication between patients, families, and caregivers.

 

Problem Spaces – Technology and Communication

 

We narrowed the problem space down to two areas:

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• Creating a device that relieves some of the work of care home staff, and also allows those living at home to live more independently 

• Facilitating matching people with dementia to volunteers with whom they can meet up on a regular basis and participate in an activity that interests both parties

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Ideation

 

We came up with two solutions to the issues we were exploring:

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• A new skill for the Amazon Alexa that would remind people with dementia to carry out specific daily tasks and also respond to specific questions that they would ask on a regular basis

• A website that allows both potential volunteers and those with dementia to create profiles detailing their likes, dislikes and needs and matches people accordingly, allowing them to schedule a regular time to meet and do an activity that lines up with their shared interests

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Nurse Interviews

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We pitched the two ideas to nurses at both Arbor Hill and Wingate Residences care homes and received the following feedback:

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• Alexa Skill

  • Some residents can use technology better than others

  • Cost may be an issue (AH); Cost is not an issue (WR)

  • Reminders would be incredibly helpful

  • The addition of lights would also be a good idea – lights that simulate sunrise/sunset are good for calming residents down

  • Could also be used for entertainment and companionship – could be used to help high-functioning residents fill out trivia games or crossword puzzles

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• Website

  • This is really helpful as it means that residents are getting one-on-one attention and are doing activities tailored to their interests

  • The staff would probably have to set up the profiles on behalf of the residents

  • Volunteers would need BCI and Flu Vaccine checks

  • The resident profiles should include their level of functioning and whether they would be able to leave the care home or not

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• Overall

  • Neither idea is ‘better’ than the other, both are promising, and some residents would be better suited to one in particular. It would be a good idea to develop both.

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Idea Development

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We took the feedback from the nurses on board and made adjustments to our designs accordingly, as well as considering some of our earlier research findings.

 

De-Stress

A digital solution for calming down Alzheimer’s patients during moments of high tension

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*NB – All illustrations and coding were done by me. 

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Problems To Solve

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• Mood Swings and Tensions

  • One issue that seems to arise in care homes sudden mood swings that can lead to arguments among residents.

  • We have also learned that music is always a good way to calm down residents, but that light also has a powerful effect. 

  • In particular, lights that emulate sunrises or sunsets cause a positive reaction. 

• Forgetting Daily Tasks

  • An obvious symptom of dementia is memory loss. This means that those with the condition often forget little things that they need to do throughout the day, such as showering, going grocery shopping or participating in a scheduled activity. 

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Idea 1 – Alexa Skill

 

We would create a new skill for Amazon’s Alexa aimed specifically at those with dementia: