Cargando…

Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia

BACKGROUND: Informal caregivers of individuals with dementia have an increased risk to face social isolation due to progression of the disease. Online social media interventions might offer a new opportunity to increase access to social support and enhance positive interactions and openness in demen...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores principales: Dam, Alieske E. H., van Boxtel, Martin P. J., Rozendaal, Nico, Verhey, Frans R. J., de Vugt, Marjolein E.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Public Library of Science 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5590823/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28886056
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0183386
_version_ 1783262594074673152
author Dam, Alieske E. H.
van Boxtel, Martin P. J.
Rozendaal, Nico
Verhey, Frans R. J.
de Vugt, Marjolein E.
author_facet Dam, Alieske E. H.
van Boxtel, Martin P. J.
Rozendaal, Nico
Verhey, Frans R. J.
de Vugt, Marjolein E.
author_sort Dam, Alieske E. H.
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Informal caregivers of individuals with dementia have an increased risk to face social isolation due to progression of the disease. Online social media interventions might offer a new opportunity to increase access to social support and enhance positive interactions and openness in dementia care networks. OBJECTIVE: This explorative pilot study describes (1) the development of an online social support intervention Inlife, and (2) the evaluation of the feasibility of this intervention and the measurements to assess its effectiveness. METHODS: The Medical Research Council (MRC) framework guided the development of the online social support intervention. This is a stepwise approach that integrates potential users’ views with the development and validation of the program content. The program was developed by combining (1) individual caregiver interviews (n = 10), (2) focus group sessions with experts and web designers (n = 6), and (3) individual think-aloud tests (n = 2). Subsequently, a pilot study with informal caregivers was conducted (n = 25) to examine the program’s feasibility and preliminary effectiveness. Online self-report measures were completed at baseline and at four follow-up time points. RESULTS: In total, 23 participants completed the newly developed Inlife intervention. Despite the high number of low-active users (17/23, 73%), Inlife had a good feasibility score of 7.1 (range: 1–10). The Calendar and Timeline were used most frequently and contributed to better care coordination and positive interactions. CONCLUSIONS: Although the Inlife platform received a sufficient feasibility rating, the uptake was not optimal. Therefore, the Inlife platform was adapted to limit the number of low-active users and improve user friendliness. Recommendations for additional treatment adherence were provided. The development according to the MRC framework and the sufficient feasibility rating of Inlife formed the basis for a future effectiveness study.
format Online
Article
Text
id pubmed-5590823
institution National Center for Biotechnology Information
language English
publishDate 2017
publisher Public Library of Science
record_format MEDLINE/PubMed
spelling pubmed-55908232017-09-15 Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia Dam, Alieske E. H. van Boxtel, Martin P. J. Rozendaal, Nico Verhey, Frans R. J. de Vugt, Marjolein E. PLoS One Research Article BACKGROUND: Informal caregivers of individuals with dementia have an increased risk to face social isolation due to progression of the disease. Online social media interventions might offer a new opportunity to increase access to social support and enhance positive interactions and openness in dementia care networks. OBJECTIVE: This explorative pilot study describes (1) the development of an online social support intervention Inlife, and (2) the evaluation of the feasibility of this intervention and the measurements to assess its effectiveness. METHODS: The Medical Research Council (MRC) framework guided the development of the online social support intervention. This is a stepwise approach that integrates potential users’ views with the development and validation of the program content. The program was developed by combining (1) individual caregiver interviews (n = 10), (2) focus group sessions with experts and web designers (n = 6), and (3) individual think-aloud tests (n = 2). Subsequently, a pilot study with informal caregivers was conducted (n = 25) to examine the program’s feasibility and preliminary effectiveness. Online self-report measures were completed at baseline and at four follow-up time points. RESULTS: In total, 23 participants completed the newly developed Inlife intervention. Despite the high number of low-active users (17/23, 73%), Inlife had a good feasibility score of 7.1 (range: 1–10). The Calendar and Timeline were used most frequently and contributed to better care coordination and positive interactions. CONCLUSIONS: Although the Inlife platform received a sufficient feasibility rating, the uptake was not optimal. Therefore, the Inlife platform was adapted to limit the number of low-active users and improve user friendliness. Recommendations for additional treatment adherence were provided. The development according to the MRC framework and the sufficient feasibility rating of Inlife formed the basis for a future effectiveness study. Public Library of Science 2017-09-08 /pmc/articles/PMC5590823/ /pubmed/28886056 http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0183386 Text en © 2017 Dam et al http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) , which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
spellingShingle Research Article
Dam, Alieske E. H.
van Boxtel, Martin P. J.
Rozendaal, Nico
Verhey, Frans R. J.
de Vugt, Marjolein E.
Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title_full Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title_fullStr Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title_full_unstemmed Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title_short Development and feasibility of Inlife: A pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
title_sort development and feasibility of inlife: a pilot study of an online social support intervention for informal caregivers of people with dementia
topic Research Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5590823/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28886056
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0183386
work_keys_str_mv AT damalieskeeh developmentandfeasibilityofinlifeapilotstudyofanonlinesocialsupportinterventionforinformalcaregiversofpeoplewithdementia
AT vanboxtelmartinpj developmentandfeasibilityofinlifeapilotstudyofanonlinesocialsupportinterventionforinformalcaregiversofpeoplewithdementia
AT rozendaalnico developmentandfeasibilityofinlifeapilotstudyofanonlinesocialsupportinterventionforinformalcaregiversofpeoplewithdementia
AT verheyfransrj developmentandfeasibilityofinlifeapilotstudyofanonlinesocialsupportinterventionforinformalcaregiversofpeoplewithdementia
AT devugtmarjoleine developmentandfeasibilityofinlifeapilotstudyofanonlinesocialsupportinterventionforinformalcaregiversofpeoplewithdementia