ELECTRONIC COMMUNITY FOR ALZHEIMERS CAREGIVERS

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The overall objective of this Phase 1 SBIR is to design an interactive multimedia advanced telecommunications system targeted at meeting the medical, social and psychological needs of primary and secondary caregivers of Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia (ADRD) patients. This system will network ADRD caregivers, patients, volunteer advisors/counselors, home health agencies, social service agencies, physicians and hospitals into an "Electronic Community for Alzheimer's Caregivers" (ECAC). Our aims re 1) to develop the ECAC model and system design through evaluation of the biopsychosocial needs of patients, families, respite caregivers and front-line health providers through focus groups; 2) to enhance the "Continuously Available Medical Care" CAMC) home station for chronically ill adults which has been in development by LG&A over past two years to address the needs of ADRD caregivers and 3) to develop an experimental research design for the Phase II effort to evaluate the results of the ECAC approach to ADRD. The ECAC system will include a videoconferencing link to providers, peer support groups, a sophisticated diary module, an automated medical encounter system, an extensive multimedia educational module, and a psychological diagnostic module permitting providers to detect issues which require professional intervention. PROPOSED COMMERCIAL APPLICATION: The commercial potential for ECAC is substantial. A target of achieving 1% acceptance among estimated 3 million ADRD caregivers at a monthly software license fee of $25/person/month, which would be updated regularly by LG&A, would result in 9 million in annual revenues and close to one million income/year level which may be achieved in five years.