Authors (including presenting author) :
LAU CC(1), CHEUK HY(2), KAM KW(2)
Affiliation :
(1)Department of Medicine & Geriatrics (2)Patient Resources Centre
Introduction :
With the projected increase of patients with dementia, community support was crucial for patients to enjoy the best-possible quality of life in the community. Some international integrated programmes, such as Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health II (REACH II), reported having positive impacts on families of patients with dementia. Those programmes consisted multiple helping strategies, including information giving, stress management and problem-solving skills. A local study also provided evidence that the integrated dementia care programme could improve psychosocial functioning of Chinese persons with dementia and their caregivers. In this regards, a PILOT project for supporting patients with dementia and their caregivers was launched in TMH with joint efforts of clinical teams, Patient Resources Centre, patient groups / volunteer teams, NGOs, families and patients. The pilot project consisted four core services, i.e. 1) Empowerment talks, 2) Specific Volunteer Services at Memory Clinic, 3) Patient & Caregiver mutual support group, 4) Developmental group for caregivers. The pilot period started from June 2019 to December 2019 (6 months), which served more than 200 patients and caregivers.
Objectives :
This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of the pilot project.
Methodology :
The evaluation was grounded in action research methodology. Purposive sampling was adopted with focus group and semi-structured interviews to explore the opinions of staff (n=5), volunteers (n=10), NGO representatives (n=2), caregivers (n=50) and patients with dementia (n=50).
Result & Outcome :
In line with studies on international or local integrated programmes of dementia, respondents viewed that the pilot project was effective in meeting their needs. The involvement of trained volunteers and community partners in the services were also perceived as extremely valuable in supporting patients with dementia and their caregivers. They also reported that the project bridged patients and caregivers to relevant community services. When asking for their opinions on service improvement, respondents suggested extending the project to other hospitals of NTWC. In view of growing numbers of patients with dementia and significant resource constraint facing by HA, this medical social collaboration project illustrated a realistic and effective solution for providing high quality care with minimal costs. As the intervention was limited to six months’ implementation, further research on this intervention and comparison with other models could be conducted.
