Digitalized Non-pharmacological Interventions for People with Dementia: Reviewing Scandinavian and International Contexts

According to the WHO, approximately 10 million new cases of dementia are diagnosed each year.

In Sweden, the National Board of Health and Welfare estimates that 190,000 people will have dementia in 2030 and approximately 250,000 people in 2050.

With increasing numbers of people with dementia comes a challenge to provide sufficient support across multiple forms of healthcare provision.

Assistive technologies, including digitalized forms, could provide a means for supporting healthcare professionals, and provide dedicated tools for diagnosis, intervention and general health monitoring.To exploit digital technologies for dementia care, it is necessary to identify and map the use of the different forms of technology.

Dementia is a progressive neurological condition and so the suitability and effectiveness of digitalized non-pharmacological interventions may change with changes in healthcare provision (e.g., transition from home-based care to residential care).

The aim of our scoping review is to map the use, and form, of emerging digital technology geographically and across different providers specifically with respect to non-pharmacological interventions including cognitive training.The mapping will clarify gaps in application in the Scandinavian (and specifically Swedish and Danish) healthcare context.

This will inform a comparative case study where the Scandinavian nations will be compared to the leading users of digital technology in the broader international context.

Both reports will be pubished in academic journals and be showcased in a workshop event organized at the University of Gothenburg.This work is intended to provide recommendations for policy makers (above all within Sweden and Denmark) for suitable use of digital technology for non-pharmacological interventions across different healthcare providers.

It should also clarify questions amenable to systematic review for future work.