There are 50 million people in the world who are diagnosed with dementia, and those numbers are expected to triple by 2050, which would also increase family members and loved ones taking on the caregiver role. This role is reported to increase depression and lower the quality of life among caregivers of persons with dementia. Changes in behavior and the increased assistance for activities of daily living (ADL) as the disease progresses could directly affect caregiver stress. Although there are resources to support caregivers, less than 50% are evidence-based. In addition, addressing needs to facilitate participation with self-care often are overlooked. The capstone’s purpose was to develop an evidence-based approach in the education and training of informal caregivers in relation to managing behaviors and facilitating participation in daily activities. Caregiver education has been shown to be a successful approach to increase knowledge and reduce burden of care among caregivers of people with dementia. The project would support the AOTA Vision 2025 of promoting the quality of life both caregivers and care recipients through providing evidence-based solutions for the caregivers’ needs. The capstone project would utilize the Person Environment Occupation model (PEO), Allen Cognitive Levels (ACL), cognitive behavioral framework, Functional Assessment Staging Tool (FAST), and the Occupational Therapy Framwork III to promote change and learning in participants.
