Dementia Specific Respite Care Concept.

Objectives: Specific mobility programs can delay the functional decline in people with dementia (PwD) and help to preserve their abilities of daily living. Respite care is a common used short time inpatient service (max. 4 weeks of stay) to support dementia care arrangements. Within the DESKK project, a concept is developed which complements and optimizes dementia-specific respite care through a mobility program and a counseling program. As one part of the DESKK study, it is the aim to develop and implement a time effective and evidence based mobility program for PwD in respite care which can be individually adapted on PwD needs and preferences. It includes a short "homework-program" for caring relatives to facilitate ongoing mobility training of the PwD after returned back home. Methods: A pilot based, quasi-experimental evaluation study is conducted in a specialized respite care facility for PwD. The concept was developed on the basis of a comprehensive literature research, study visits at existing counseling programs as well as expert workshops with practitioners and scientists. To evaluate the implementation process, qualitative data are collected by single und group interviews. Quantitative data are collected using validated instruments to assess mobility and cognitive function of PwD. A mixed methods triangulation approach will be used to aggregate qualitative and quantitative data. Discussion: It is expected that the RC concept will be suitable and understandable for the staff, so that it can be implemented in the RC facility. As a result of the mobility program, the physical abilities of the PwDs should improve. Similar, the burden of the caregivers should be reduced by combined effects of the counselling program and the higher mobility level of the PwD. The whole DESKK concept, including a systematic counseling program for caring relatives, which is not part of this presentation, will be described in form of a practice friendly website to get dissemina