Investigating Users' and Other Stakeholders' Needs in the Development of a Personalized Integrated Care Platform (PROCare4Life) for Older People with Dementia or Parkinson Disease: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Study

Mona Ahmed; Mayca Marín; Raquel Bouça-Machado; Daniella How; Elda Judica; Peppino Tropea; Ellen Bentlage; Michael Brach

doi:10.2196/22463

Investigating Users' and Other Stakeholders' Needs in the Development of a Personalized Integrated Care Platform (PROCare4Life) for Older People with Dementia or Parkinson Disease: Protocol for a Mixed Methods Study

JMIR Res Protoc. 2021 Jan 12;10(1):e22463. doi: 10.2196/22463.

Authors

Mona Ahmed^#¹, Mayca Marín^#², Raquel Bouça-Machado^#³, Daniella How¹, Elda Judica⁴, Peppino Tropea⁴, Ellen Bentlage¹, Michael Brach¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Sport and Exercise Sciences, Münster University, Münster, Germany.
² Asociación Parkinson Madrid, Madrid, Spain.
³ Campus Neurológico Sénior, Torres Vedras, Portugal.
⁴ Department of Neurorehabilitation Sciences, Casa di Cura del Policlinico, Milan, Italy.

^# Contributed equally.

PMID: 33433394
PMCID: PMC7837994
DOI: 10.2196/22463

Abstract

Background: Dementias-including Alzheimer disease-and Parkinson disease profoundly impact the quality of life of older population members and their families. PROCare4Life (Personalized Integrated Care Promoting Quality of Life for Older Adults) is a European project that recognizes the benefit of technology-based integrated care models in improving the care coordination and the quality of life of these target groups. This project proposes an integrated, scalable, and interactive care platform targeting older people suffering from neurodegenerative diseases, their caregivers, and socio-health professionals. PROCare4Life adopts a user-centered design approach from the early stage and throughout platform development and implementation, during which the platform is designed and adapted to the needs and requirements of all the involved users.

Objective: This paper presents the study protocol for investigating users' needs and requirements regarding the design of the proposed PROCare4Life platform.

Methods: A mixed qualitative and quantitative study design is utilized, including online surveys, interviews, and workshops. The study aimed to recruit approximately 200 participants, including patients diagnosed with dementia or Parkinson disease, caregivers, socio-health professionals, and other stakeholders, from five different European countries: Germany, Italy, Portugal, Romania, and Spain.

Results: The study took place between April and September 2020. Recruitment is now closed, and all the data have been collected and analyzed in order to be used in shaping the large-scale pilot phase of the PROCare4Life project. Results of the study are expected to be published in spring 2021.

Conclusions: This paper charts the protocol for a user-centered design approach at the early stage of the PROCare4Life project in order to shape and influence an integrated health platform suitable for its intended target group and purpose.

International registered report identifier (irrid): DERR1-10.2196/22463.

Keywords: dementia; health care technologies; integrated care; neurodegenerative diseases; older adults; user-centered design.

©Mona Ahmed, Mayca Marín, Raquel Bouça-Machado, Daniella How, Elda Judica, Peppino Tropea, Ellen Bentlage, Michael Brach. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 12.01.2021.