Using Technology to Support the Role of Family Caregivers
Drs. Lorraine Holtslander and Shelley Peacock have received SHRF funding for their project which combines technology and caregiving.
In an ideal world, older adults would have the opportunity to age comfortably in their own home; in many cases, family caregivers are the backbone of the support necessary to achieve this, providing unpaid care, often with very little support from others. A team of researchers with backgrounds in nursing and psychology are working with the Saskatoon Council on Aging (SCOA) and a local technology company, Refresh Enterprises, to develop and test an app that they hope will improve and support the caregiver experience.
College of Nursing co-principal applicants Drs. Lorraine Holtslander and Shelley Peacock, alongside co-applicants Drs. Kristen Haase (College of Nursing) and Megan O’Connell (College of Arts & Science), have received Saskatchewan Health Research Foundation Collaborative Innovation Development funding for this project. “Family caregivers provide so much more than what meets the eye and as a result, they often bear a lot of challenges and burden in carrying out their role,” said Holtslander. “We plan to build a community of caregivers where individuals can obtain support, gather information and find relief through an innovative internet-based smart phone tool.”
The group plans on conducting eight focus group sessions, where they will interview a number of family caregivers to collect data on the type of support the caregivers would like to have available through the app. “This project has great potential to impact the health of Saskatchewan residents, as most older adults would like to remain in their own homes, supported by their families and they are looking for creative, online solutions, information and support on how to do so,” added Peacock. “The more we can do to support family caregivers, the higher likelihood more older adults will thrive in their own homes and communities in the future.”
As this project moves forward, the research team plans to apply for additional funding to expand the reach of the app. “To start, the app will be focused on services in Saskatoon, but our overall goal is to ultimately tailor the app for people living in rural and remote populations and for unique groups of caregivers such as those caring for persons with dementia, bereaved caregivers, and so on,” concluded Holtslander.