Overview
Worldwide, around 55 million people have dementia. Dementia causes significant psychological and emotional impact on families, especially carers of people with dementia. iSupport is a skills and training program for carers of people with dementia, which was developed by the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Mental Health and Substance Use Team.
- iSupport is a self-help tool for carers of people with dementia, including family members, relatives and friends.
-
iSupport aims to prevent and/or decrease mental and physical health problems associated with caregiving and to improve the quality of life of those caring for people with dementia.
With permission from the WHO, Hamad Medical Corporation’s Department of Geriatrics and Long-Term Care and the National Dementia Taskforce have adapted the iSupport tool for local contexts and needs and have translated this into Arabic.
Carers in Qatar can choose to work through all modules and lessons consecutively or select the lessons that are the most relevant to their everyday lives. All lessons consist of brief readings, descriptive examples and several exercises. Carers can receive feedback from their healthcare team as they work through each exercise.
The iSupport manual includes five modules and accompanying exercises, namely: (i) introduction to dementia; (ii) being a caregiver; (iii) caring for me; (iv) providing everyday care; and (v) dealing with behavior changes. The modules and exercises reflect those included in the online version of iSupport. The iSupport manual can be printed and used offline, allowing for a broad reach of the program.
