Developing a Memory and Communication App for Persons Living With Dementia: An 8-Step Process

According to the 2022 Alzheimer’s Association Facts and Figures, more than 6 million Americans have Alzheimer disease and related dementias. They are cared for by millions of family members, friends, or other unpaid caregivers. Communication deficits are common among persons with Alzheimer disease and related dementias and pose challenges to caregiving and clinical care, which is already complex. An interdisciplinary team developed a mobile app prototype to improve communications between people living with dementia and their caregivers and providers and to promote person-centered care. This viewpoint paper provides a road map for how the interdisciplinary team worked together to develop and plan for the implementation and evaluation of a new evidence-based app. In our paper, we provide an 8-step process used by a team of clinicians, researchers, and software engineers to develop a new app to meet the needs of people living with dementia and their caregiver(s). The planned clinical trial has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04571502; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04571502). INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): RR2-10.3928/19404921-20210825-02