A counterbalanced crossover pilot study of a personalized smartphone reminder application for older adults with cognitive impairment.
Katherine Hackett, Moira McKniff, Sarah Lehman and 6 others
PMID 40244883WHAT IT FOUND
Care-partners reported significantly better task completion and lower burden when the person used the personalized SmartPrompt2 app.
However, the app did not significantly improve the participant's own reported task completion compared to just tracking tasks on paper.
Key findings
01Care-partners reported significantly higher task completion and lower burden with the app, but this was not mirrored by significant changes in participant-reported task completion.
02The app was feasible: all participants completed the study without adverse events, and 90% engaged with the app every day during the two-week testing period.
03Participants and care-partners rated the usability as excellent, and all participants requested to keep the app after the study.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
Very small sample size (n=10) limits generalizability. The study was not blinded; participants and care-partners knew which condition they were in. Task completion was high in both conditions (ceiling effect), making it difficult to detect improvements in the primary participant-reported outcome. The control condition involved active tracking via diaries, which may itself have improved performance. The app was only available for iPhone users, excluding Android users. Care-partners were heavily involved in training and monitoring, so results may not apply to clients living alone.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest. The study was funded by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB).
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume the app significantly improved the participant's own ability to complete tasks. The primary participant-reported outcome was null, likely because task completion was already near perfect in both the app and control conditions. The significant findings were reported by care-partners regarding burden and their perception of completion.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →