For many people living with dementia, living at home with family is preferable to assisted living or long-term care. However, as the symptoms of dementia progress, people living with dementia often experience a decline in functional abilities, which in turn requires greater support from their caregivers.
When informal caregivers – who may be spouses, family, or friends – take on greater responsibilities in assisting people living with dementia complete activities of daily living, they increase their own risk of stress and burnout. Yet it can be difficult for caregivers to self-identify when their load has become a burden, and when they may need to engage additional supports.
Thanks to new funding from the Alzheimer’s Association and Brain Canada, researchers at the Bruyère Research Institute, Carleton University, AGE-WELL SAM3 National Innovation Hub, and Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) are working to develop a measure, using artificial intelligence (AI), that can help identify when care partners are experiencing higher levels of burden.