What is our ARCOM-funded study, and why is it important?

ARCOM is a grant program led by the Alzheimer’s Association, which stands for Advancing Research on Care and Outcome Measures (ARCOM). The ARCOM Program has supported a range of studies to advance the development or refinement of dementia care and outcome measures across diverse populations and setting of care. The Gilmore-Bykovskyi received an ARCOM award titled “Person-centered Outcome Measures for Alzheimer’s disease Patient Emergency Care Experiences.”

More than half of the 6 million people experiencing memory changes in the United States visit the emergency department each year. These emergency department visits can be incredibly stressful and challenging for people experiencing memory changes, whose communication and care needs are often not well recognized and challenging to meet in this environment. 

This study will allow the team to develop a better understanding of the priorities of people experiencing memory changes and their caregivers when they visit the emergency department. It will also support the development of new tools to measure those priorities, enabling assessment of aspects of the emergency care experience that are most important to those living with dementia.