Effectiveness of a tablet‐based intervention for people living with dementia in primary care—A cluster randomized controlled trial

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundPrimary care physicians (PCP) play a key role in the care of people living with dementia. However, the implementation and practicability of the German S3 Dementia Guideline in primary care remain unclear. The main objective of the present study was to evaluate an intervention for improving guideline‐based dementia care in primary care.DesignA two‐arm, 9‐month follow‐up cluster‐randomized controlled trial with two parallel groups.Setting28 primary care practices in Berlin and the surrounding area in Germany.ParticipantsA total of N = 28 PCP, N = 91 people living with dementia, and N = 88 informal caregivers participated in the trial.InterventionA tablet‐based intervention to improve adherence to the German S3 Dementia Guideline in primary care was compared to a control group (care as usual plus a handbook on dementia). MeasurementsAdherence to dementia guideline (primary outcome) was measured on PCP’ (23 items) and informal caregivers' level (19 items) with a self‐developed checklist. Secondary outcomes (quality of life, neuropsychiatric symptoms, activities of daily living, general health status, depression, and caregiver burden) were measured with standardized assessments. Also, post‐hoc per‐protocol analyses were conducted.ResultsNo differences in guideline adherence between the intervention and the control group were observed. Further, no significant impact of the intervention on secondary outcomes was detected.ConclusionThe DemTab Study did not improve self‐reported guideline adherence in PCP. However, important implementation barriers such as lack of interoperability and low applicability of existing German S3 Dementia Guideline in the primary care setting were identified and are being discussed.Trial registration: The DemTab trial was prospectively registered with the ISRCTN registry (Trial registration number: ISRCTN15854413). Registered 01 April 2019, https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN15854413.