Telehealth delivery of a compensatory cognitive training program for older adults with mild cognitive difficulties

ABSTRACT

Rates of cognitive impairment among older adults are expected to increase substantially in the coming decades. Older adults may experience mild cognitive difficulties, characterized as a decline in cognition that does not significantly interfere with an individual's ability to complete activities of daily living. However, these individuals may need additional time, strategies, or help from a care partner (CP) to complete more complex functional activities. Cognitive training (CT) interventions have been shown to be beneficial for improving or stabilizing objective cognitive functioning, with less known about how CT may impact daily functioning or the lives of CPs. Additionally, CT is typically delivered in-person, which was not feasible during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this study used a pre-post design to investigate the feasibility of a telehealth compensatory CT program for older adults with mild cognitive difficulties. It also examined the effects of program participation on participants' daily, emotional, and subjective cognitive functioning, as well as the effects CPs experienced through participation in the program. Feasibility was measured through tracking enrollment and completion rates, participant and clinician ratings of sessions' technological interference, and qualitative feedback from patients about the telehealth delivery. Paired t-tests were used to evaluate sets of pre- and post-measures completed by both participants and CPs. Results showed that older adults found the telehealth delivery to be feasible. After statistical correction, no significant differences were found between participant pre- and post-measures, though small to medium effect sizes were observed and participants qualitatively reported benefits from the CT. CPs experienced a significant increase on measures assessing the rewarding aspects of providing care, and they provided qualitative feedback on the benefits of the program without significant added burden. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)