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Challenges in Dementia Care: Can Technology Help People with Dementia?
Dementia affects nearly 6 million people in Europe, and the number is increasing. Many people with mild to moderate dementia want to live at home and manage daily tasks themselves. However, their ability to maintain relationships or to handle different tasks and activities deteriorates progressively and reduces their quality of life. Even people with mild dementia experience frequent failures. This can lead to worries and depression, and in turn to poorer functioning than otherwise could be possible.

Objectives
The ENABLE Project (www.enableproject.org) investigates if assistive technology can support people with mild to moderate dementia and their families in daily life. Products developed and tried in the project aim at supporting memory, assisting communication and provide entertainment. The project raises new dimensions and perspectives in dementia care.

Can technology help?
Yes, it can, but not always. Why is one technical aid useful for some, and less useful for others? Aspects to consider in this connection will be presented, based on results from assessment studies of seven different assistive aids in five European countries. The knowledge from the ENABLE project has implications and interest for people with dementia, their carers and organisations, health & care professionals, policy makers, researchers & teachers as well as assistive technology centres and companies that develop and market assistive aids. The ENABLE partners arranged this cross-disciplinary conference, which marks the end of this 3 1/2 year project.

The ENABLE partners are:
Norwegian Centre for Dementia Research, Co-ordinator, NORWAY Inger Hagen, Scientific co-ordinator, NORWAY Work Research Centre, IRELAND Dementia Services Information and Development Centre, IRELAND STAKES, FINLAND Geriatric Clinic, Kaunas Medical University, LITHUANIA Dementia Voice, UK Bath Institute of Medical Engineering, UK Sidsel Bjoerneby AS, NORWAY
Continue to this page for programme and presentations from the conference.

Enabling products for persons with dementia

This is the web site of an exciting research project which is aimed at "marrying the new with the familiar" when developing and introducing new technology to people with dementia and their carers.

Product of the month:

Programmable telephone with large buttons

Click for more information

Quality of Life

The project aims at facilitating independent living of people with early dementia and to promote their wellbeing through access to enabling systems and products. Pleasure, memory support, entertainment and own activity are key words in the project. The project is funded under the EC Programme Quality of Life and living resources, and will last for three years, starting in March 2001.

Five countries, wide experience

The partners are situated in England, Ireland, Finland, Lithuania and Norway, are interdisciplinary and have wide experience in dementia care and research, technology development and human factors.

We welcome questions and comments!
-> post@enableproject.org

Funded by the European Commission under the Programme "Quality of Life and Management of Living Resources", Contract No. QLK6 - 2000 - 00653

Last updated:
24-Oct-2008