Creating a Faith-Based Toolbox for African Americans Living with Moderate and Severe Dementia

项目总结/摘要 Fayron Epps，博士，RN是格鲁吉亚州立大学的护理助理教授。她的研究重点 提高老年阿尔茨海默病和相关痴呆症患者的生活质量， 通过改善自我护理，促进和发展有意义的参与， 活动她特别感兴趣的是与信仰社区合作并进行研究，以支持 受ADRD影响的非洲裔美国人（AA）家庭。她的长期职业目标是成为一名 高效，独立的老年病学家和领导者，在AA内拥有家庭护理和ADRD方面的专业知识 社区候选人提出一个全面的培训计划，包括教学课程， 实践经验，积极参与研讨会和讲习班，以及由 一个跨学科的导师团队和咨询委员会。Epps博士的培训计划包含三个目标：1） 加强生物行为研究方法的技能，重点是测量与以下方面有关的生物特性： 压力反应; 2）加深对宗教信仰对受ADRD影响的家庭的作用的理解; 3） 继续加强学术生产力和领导技能。研究内容包括三个 目的：1）为患有中度自闭症的AA家庭开发一个基于信仰的家庭活动工具包（Faith-HAT） 和严重ADRD; 2）测试使用Faith-HAT的可行性并探索初步有效性; 3） 建立一个完善的有意义的基于信仰的家庭活动工具包。格鲁吉亚州立大学提供了一个理想的 为拟议的研究和培训提供研究环境。研究招募、保留和执行将 与埃默里大学阿尔茨海默病和少数民族研究中心合作进行 参与核心和一个以亚特兰大为基地的部长级联盟。拟议的研究将推动ADRD 通过为AA家庭提供非药物干预和有意义的活动来支持， 生活质量这个K23奖将给予博士埃普斯在项目的进行必不可少的实践经验 开发和实施研究，因为她将在开发和实施临床 进行一项可行性试验，研究以家庭为基础的宗教活动对AA家庭福祉的影响 受ADRD影响。在这个奖项结束时，候选人将获得的技能，知识， 初步的数据，成功地成为一个成熟的独立研究者，改善健康和良好的， ADRD患者及其护理人员。

Project Summary/Abstract Fayron Epps, PhD, RN is an Assistant Professor of Nursing at Georgia State University. Her research focuses on promoting quality of life for older adults living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) and their family caregivers through improving self-care and promoting and developing meaningful engagement activities. She is particularly interested in working with and conducting research in faith communities to support African American (AA) families affected by ADRD. Her long-term career goal is to establish herself as a productive, independent gerontologist and leader with expertise in family caregiving and ADRD within the AA community. The candidate proposes a comprehensive training plan that incorporates didactic coursework, hands-on experiences, active participation in seminars and workshops, and dedicated meetings overseen by an interdisciplinary mentor team and advisory committee. Dr. Epps’ training plan immerses three goals: 1) to strengthen skills in biobehavioral research methods with a focus on measuring biological properties related to stress response; 2) to deepen understanding of the role of religiosity for families affected by ADRD; and 3) to continue to strengthen academic productivity and leadership skills. The proposed research includes three aims: 1) develop a prototype faith-based home activity toolkit (Faith-HAT) for AA families living with moderate and severe ADRD; 2) test the feasibility and explore preliminary effectiveness of employing Faith-HAT; and 3) construct a refined toolkit of meaningful faith-based home activities. Georgia State University offers an ideal research environment for the proposed research and training. Study recruitment, retention, and execution will be conducted in collaboration with Emory University Alzheimer’s Disease and Research Center Minority Engagement Core and an Atlanta-based Ministerial Alliance. The proposed research will advance ADRD support by providing AA families with a nonpharmacological intervention and meaningful activities to promote quality of life. This K23 award will give Dr. Epps essential practical experience in the conduct of program development and implementation research, as she will be mentored in developing and implementing a clinical feasibility trial to examine the effect of a home-based religious program on the well-being of AA families affected by ADRD. At the conclusion of this award, the candidate will have obtained the skills, knowledge, and preliminary data to successfully become a full-fledged independent investigator improving the health and well- being of persons with ADRD and their caregivers.