More than 7 million Americans live with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD), supported by 12 million unpaid family caregivers whose contributions are valued at $413 billion annually. As the U.S. population continues to age, the number of people with dementia and their caregivers will nearly trip by 2050. Innovative solutions to support family caregivers are urgently needed.
Now, with a $3 million grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA), digital health intervention researcher, Y. Alicia Hong, is poised to change that. Hong led an interdisciplinary team to develop the Wellness Enhancement for Caregivers (WECARE) as a culturally tailored, digital health intervention to enhance caregiving skills and improve the wellbeing of dementia caregivers. The new grant will allow her team to further refine WECARE using AI technology and evaluate it with a randomized controlled trial.
"WECARE is one of the first personalized digital interventions for dementia caregivers. Though it is designed for Chinese American dementia caregivers, it can be adapted for other groups and serve the growing demand for digital support for dementia caregivers in an aging society," said Hong, a professor in the College of Public Health Department of Health Administration and Policy at George Mason University.
The 7-week program will provide participants with informational ADRD multimedia content, quiz games, social networking with other caregivers, personalized feedback, and additional individualized resources. WECARE's success will be evaluated by measuring the depressive symptoms reported by participants. The project also intends to identify barriers to and facilitators of WECARE's adoption and long-term use.
This resource comes at a critical time as the aging population grows, and more people with ADRD require caregivers. Additionally, most family caregivers have chronic conditions due to prolonged and intensive dementia caregiving, causing an increased need for resources that sustain the health of family caregivers.
Hong's grant entitled "WECARE: A Personalized Intervention for Underserved Chinese American Dementia Caregivers" will take place from September 2025 to August 2030, for a total of $3,088,427. WECARE is directly responsive to NIA's priority of effective interventions for ADRD-affected populations.
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