The lives of people with dementia who live in rural and northern parts of Saskatchewan are about to get a little easier.
The Canadian Institutes of Health Research and its partners have awarded $1.25 million to a research team at the University of Saskatchewan to develop a better way to provide care and treatment for rural and northern seniors with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia.
“We’ve been visiting northern communities as part of the lead up to our clinic being launched in the new year, and we’re discovering the huge challenges for people to travel to Saskatoon and other larger centres for assessment,” said team leader Debra Morgan, a professor from the university’s Institute of Agricultural, Rural and Environmental Health.
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“It’s very time consuming, and for people with memory problems and dementia, travel can be very difficult.”
Rural and northern patients seeking a full neurological assessment need several different tests, such as a neuro-imagery exam and a CAT scan. However, these tests are never co-ordinated for the same day, forcing patients to make several trips.
As well, rural and northern patients diagnosed with dementia are required to return to Saskatoon four times a year for checkups.
The U of S research team is hoping to develop neurological assessment in Saskatoon, where all of the necessary tests are done on the same day.
The group will also evaluate the use of telehealth, also known as videoconferencing, for followup.
“The introduction of telehealth tends to create new regions,” said Lesley McBain, a research team member who studies health care services in the province’s north.
“You get new hubs and spokes in the provision of services,” which McBain said will ultimately lead to greater access to health services in rural and northern Saskatchewan.
If follow-up videoconferencing proves successful with dementia patients, it will be applied to the overall treatment, avoiding costly and time-consuming visits to the city.
The team will also evaluate the use of existing dementia services in rural and northern Saskatchewan, and examine caregiver and nurse training in rural home care and nursing homes.
