UCLA Geriatrics receives $13.6 million to evaluate approaches to dementia care

There are an estimated 5.5 million Americans living with Alzheimer ’s disease, the most common type of dementia. As that number grows over the next few decades, health care organizations will need to develop better ways to serve people with dementia and the family members who care for them.Various approaches have been taken to manage the care of those with dementia, but there is not a consensus on which ones are the most effective. To help address this issue, the UCLA Division of Geriatrics has received a five-year, $13.6 million award from the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to compare care delivered through a health system with care that occurs in a community-based setting.UCLA HealthDr. David Reuben“Whether a care team working within the health system can do a better job than a community-based care manager in coordinating the health and social needs of persons with dementia and their families is a fundamental, unanswered question,” said Dr. David Reuben, Archstone Professor of Medicine and chief of the UCLA Division of Geriatrics, who will lead the study.Researchers will recruit 1,534 participants with dementia at four U.S. sites who will receive 18 months of care in either a health system-based or community-based dementia care system. Within a health system setting, dementia patient care is typically overseen by dementia care managers who have access to medical records, primary care physicians and consultants. Within a community-based system, care manag...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news