VIPCare: Understanding the Support Needed to Create Affective Interactions between New Caregivers and Residents with Dementia

This paper proposes VIPCare1, a novel application that assists new caregivers at care-centres in interacting with residents with dementia. A mixed-methods study including 2 focus groups and 7 co-design sessions with 17 professional caregivers of people with dementia was conducted. The goal of the study was (a) to understand caregivers’ challenges and approaches used to reduce negative interactions with persons with dementia, and (b) to co-design an application that helps improve interactions between a new caregiver and persons with dementia. The application provides clues about the affective state of people with dementia and provides suggestions about the interaction approach. Focus groups pointed out daily challenges and emphasized the importance of role-playing. The layout and contents of the application was then designed in 4 iterative paper-prototyping sessions. An iOS/Android-based application was developed accordingly and was modified/improved in 3 additional iterative co-design sessions. Pilot testing with 11 participants helped better understand the required refinements.