Alzheimer Care Centre Long-Term Data Set

1. Alzheimer Care Centre Long-Term Data Set Walsh, T. L., Milke, D. L. & George, C.P. In June 2002, as part of a five-year research plan, CapitalCare initiated an Alzheimer Care Centre Long Term Data Set (ACC-LTDS) to gather client information from all three of its Alzheimer Care Centres (ACC). While the ACC-LTDS is a resource for clinical and planning purposes, it may also be accessed by external researchers for their own research purposes, subject to appropriate ethics and organization approval. The dataset has some limitations but it has the potential to support long-term, multi-faceted studies related to this population. The Alzheimer Care Centers In 1995, CapitalCare opened its first residential family-style environment for people with Alzheimer Disease. The University of Alberta (U of A) and CapitalCare simultaneously signed a 20-year agreement with respect to the centre for the purposes of research. The Data Collection Data collection began in June 2002 and is continued every summer by a Research Assistant hired and trained specifically for this project. When a resident is admitted between data collection points (i.e., between September and May), a trained Research Intern collects the resident’s information (approximately one to three months after admission to the centre). • Population • The database includes all residents living in the ACCs between June 2002 and present (2008). • All residents are diagnosed with a dementia; Alzheimer Disease being the most prevalent. • Over one-third of residents are admitted from a private home. • Most residents are discharged to another long term care centre. • The average length of stay for residents is 3.2 years. agreement created a joint opportunity for CapitalCare and the U of A to engage in applied research related to Alzheimer care and it extends to all similar centres that the organization may operate. CapitalCare currently operates three Alzheimer Care Centres (ACCs) using this model of care: McConnell Place North, McConnell Place West, and the Strathcona Alzheimer Care Centre (T = 108 beds). • Measures • The ACC-LTDS contains demographic, diagnostic, medication information and history of falls from administrative datasets (administrative data has limitations) and clinical reports. • Three standardized measures have been collected since 2002: • Functional Autonomy Measurement System (SMAF) – measures the autonomy or independence of an individual (Hébert, Carrier & Bilodeau, 1993). • Modified Mini Mental State Exam (3MS) – extended version of the Mini-Mental Status Exam (Bravo and Hébert, 1997). • Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia (CSDD) – assesses the frequency of depressive symptoms displayed by an individual (Alexopoulos et al., 1988). • One additional measure was added in 2005: • Mealtime Assessment Screening Tool (MAST) – a screening tool that determines if an individual experiences eating difficulties (Steele et al., 1997). To access the database: Contact Tara Walsh: tarawalsh@capitalcare.net (780) 448-2426