2024 Advancing Research on Care and Outcome Measurements (ARCOM)

Measuring and Improving the Quality of Community-Based Dementia Care

How can research improve the quality of care received by people living with dementia dwelling in the community?

Dallas Seitz, M.D., Ph.D.
University of Calgary
Calgary, Canada

Background

According to the 2023 Alzheimer’s Association Facts and Figures report, an estimated 70% of older adults with Alzheimer’s or other dementias live in the community. Most people with Alzheimer’s or other dementias who live at home receive unpaid help from family members and friends, but some also receive paid home- and community-based services, such as home health services and adult day services. Currently, little is known about the care priorities of people living with dementia in the community, nor is there an accepted way to measure the quality of community-based care received by different populations.

Research Plan

Dr. Dallas Seitz and colleagues will study standardized measures of care called Quality Indicators (QIs) for community-based dementia care. First, the research team will identify a core set of QIs for community-based dementia care, incorporating the priorities of people living with dementia, caregivers, health and social service providers, and decision-makers. Next, leveraging databases available from Alberta Health Services, they will measure this set of QIs in people living with dementia in Alberta, Canada, to assess the quality of care in that population and identify factors associated with health equity. Finally, Dr. Seitz and colleagues will mobilize what they learn to improve community-based care for people living with dementia. These efforts will include publicly sharing technical standards and QIs with other researchers and communities. The team will also create an “Alberta Community Action Plan” based on their results to highlight priority areas for quality improvement in Alberta.

Impact

The results of this project will be shared with stakeholders and decision-makers in Canada and internationally to facilitate the study and improvement of community-based care for people living with dementia.