Beyond traditional support: Co-creating an application addressing resilience of informal caregivers of persons with dementia
S. Ipakchian Askari ¹, N. E. Stolwijk, M. J. Francke, J. M. Verlinden, J.Morozowska, W. J. Stevens, M. Garschall, B. Wais-Zechmann, K. M. Piskorska, M.I. Zegwaard, A. Gaasterland, I. Bierhoff, H. H. Nap. Gerontechnology 25(s)
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AbstractPURPOSE: Informal caregivers of people living with dementia (ICGD, PwD) represent a high-risk group, with one in three ICGD developing depression compared to one in five in the general population [1,2]. Currently, there is a lack of evidence-based prevention programs available to this group within health and care systems [3]. The DemiCare+ project aims to implement an integrated solution to prevent depression among ICGD by means of micro interventions to help sustain informal caregiving and indirectly increase quality of care for PwD. This project is a collaboration between partners in Austria, Romania, and The Netherlands. It builds on the personalized information and training offered by the existing DemiCare app [4]—a fully automated self-help preventive intervention that already provides guidance on managing behavioral problems in PwD and improving caregiving competencies. Co-design sessions were conducted to gain insight into the needs and preferences of ICGD regarding such an application and to better understand the challenges they face in caring for PwD. METHOD: Three co-design sessions were conducted in The Netherlands and one in Austria (N=6 in the Netherlands and N= 7 in Austria). In the Netherlands the co-design sessions included ICGD and informal caregivers for elderly and people with a cognitive disability. In Austria all participants were ICGD. The collected data from the co-sessions were analyzed separately based on the country. During the analysis, design features were extracted by looking at overlapping insights between the various co-design sessions per individual country. Following, a comparison was made between insights in The Netherlands and Austria. Based on these insights, a prioritization workshop with project partners was conducted to derive the design guidelines for the development of an application tailored to informal caregivers of persons with dementia. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: We found overlapping needs among participants from both countries. ICGD's in both countries expressed the need for support in building a network, distributing tasks, and fostering a sense of community among fellow ICGD's. Besides, they want to learn how to keep a balance in their personal life and caring responsibilities. In contrast, some differences emerged. Dutch participants emphasized a need for creating a positive self-image through the app, while Austrian participants highlighted the importance of offering distraction. Besides, as was found in previous research, the participants in this study also had a variety of different needs, requiring personalization of features [5]. It was mentioned that the information-seeking behavior can vary among ICGD's. The most recent version of the DemiCare application will be demonstrated during the oral presentation.Keywords: informal care, co-creation, digital care, app development and dementia
S. Ipakchian Askari ¹, N. E. Stolwijk, M. J. Francke, J. M. Verlinden, J.Morozowska, W. J. Stevens, M. Garschall, B. Wais-Zechmann, K. M. Piskorska, M.I. Zegwaard, A. Gaasterland, I. Bierhoff, H. H. Nap. Gerontechnology 25(s) (2026). Beyond traditional support: Co-creating an application addressing resilience of informal caregivers of persons with dementia. Gerontechnology, 25(2), 1-10
https://doi.org/10.4017/gt.2026.25.2.1466.3