AppForDem Project

PRESENTATION

The AppForDem project is aimed at creating an educational app and e-learning course -open educational resources- for caregivers of people with dementia.

MULTILINGUAL APP

The training contents of this app are available in English, Spanish, Italian and Romanian:

(ES) App educativa para cuidadores de personas con demencia

(IT) App formativa per caregivers di persone affette da demenza

(RO) Aplicatie educativa pentru ingrijitorii persoanelor cu dementa

(EN) Educational app for caregivers of people with dementia

OBJECTIVE OF THE PROJECT

The AppforDem project is aimed at creating a set of open educational and multilingual resources on dementia, with the purpose of implementing these resources in the national VET programmes for apprentices and professional caregivers in long-term care services (LTC).

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

People with dementia are at greater risk for developing other diseases and they often have co-morbidities. They may lose their appetite and forget to drink; dementia can also affect a patient’s ability to express pain and discomfort.

Using the app “Dementia and daily living” allows users to acquire knowledge, or test their knowledge, about dementia, symptoms related to behavior, nutrition, activities of daily living, the senses as well as pain and gastrointestinal issues, and to receive support to help identify symptoms and to respond appropriately to changes in a dementia patient’s physical condition.

The app will also help to spot changes in physical and mental symptoms of people with dementia - and get suggestions on what caregivers can do, based on theirs observations. In the app caregivers can read about various dementia diseases and concepts related to dementia.

DEMENTIA AND DAILY LIVING

This app is called "Dementia and Daily Living" because it helps provide a picture of how everyday life with dementia can work if relatives, professionals, and surroundings have sufficient knowledge and understanding of both the disease and the person behind it. Daily activities are of great importance. Daily activities help to strengthen identity and promote the experience of who you are.

Activities also maintain skills and provide structure and quality of everyday life. It is different which activities you experience as enriching. For some, quality of life is about having a good day with loved ones. For others, quality of life is associated with good food and drink, spending time with others, exercise, cultural events such as theatre, song and music, a good book, hiking in nature, travel, etc.

Everyday life fills most of our lives; therefore, creating a good everyday life equals a good life.

THE USE OF THE APP IN TRAINING COURSES AND IN PRACTICE

The app can be used as a part of teaching about dementia and daily living in vocational education and training of professional caregivers.

In addition, many practitioners will be able to use the app in their daily work with people with dementia, especially those who work in nursing homes and home care. Non-formal caregivers (family caregivers) will be able to use the learning resources.