Findings from IDEA Café, the first pilot intervention for sexual and gender minority older adults living with dementia with no care partner
Year: 2023
Type: article
Study designs: Randomized Controlled Trial, Clinical Trial
Abstract: Background Due to our aging population and changing demographics, there are an increasing number of older adults with dementia with no care partner in the U.S., a trend more pronounced among sexual and gender minority (SGM) older adults. To our knowledge there are no extant interventions for SGM older adults with dementia and few dementia interventions that do not rely on the presence of a care partner. Method We tested an innovative group adaptation of Innovations in Dementia Empowerment and Action (IDEA), IDEA Café. SGM older adults with dementia (including mild cognitive impairment) and no care partner were enrolled and randomly assigned to IDEA Café (n = 15) or routine medical care (RMC; n = 15). IDEA Café participants attended a 9‐session virtual group program emphasizing exercise, pleasant events, social support, and stress management. The goal was to improve the health‐related quality of life of SGM older adults with dementia and no care partner. We aimed to assess the intervention’s feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy. Result We met enrollment goals and had good adherence, compliance, and participation, demonstrating feasibility. Participants and interventionists found the intervention acceptable. Within‐group tests revealed the RMC group showed no statistical changes from pre‐test to post‐test, while the IDEA Café treatment group showed significant improvement in primary outcomes, including physical functioning and depressive symptomology with medium effect sizes, and quality of life with small effect size. Between‐group tests found the IDEA Café group had significantly higher physical functioning and quality of life and lower microaggression scores than the RMC group at posttest, all with large effect sizes. In secondary outcomes, IDEA Café participants’ microaggression scores, perceived stress, and social isolation scores significantly decreased with medium effect size, and informational and social support increased with medium affect size. Conclusion Our results offer preliminary evidence for a group‐based virtual intervention for this health disparate, underserved population. Our significant findings support IDEA Café’s mechanisms of change: increasing physical activity and mobilizing social support, while addressing SGM risk and protective factors. Future research should examine treatment effects over time with a larger sample size, and the moderating and mediating effects of background characteristics.
Source: Alzheimer s & Dementia
DOI: 10.1002/alz.075012
Institutions: University of Washington, University of Washington Tacoma
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4390200054