BPSD Guide - Dementia 2.0.5

This App was developed to provide guidance for clinicians in their role of assisting residential aged care facility staff, community care staff and family members caring for persons living with dementia, who present with behavioural and psychological symptoms. This App provides summary information relevant to the most commonly presenting behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD):

• A description of the symptom and how it presents in dementia
• Potential causes and/or contributing factors
• Differential diagnosis
• Assessment tools
• Conclusions based on a review of available literature
• Precautions
• Suggested psychosocial, environmental, biological and pharmacological interventions with outcomes of the available evidence
• Brief clinical scenario

The content of the App is based on the document Behaviour Management - A Guide to Good Practice: Managing Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (2012). The Guide was funded by the Australian Government and developed by the Dementia Collaborative Research Centre (DCRC-ABC) to be used as a resource by Dementia Behaviour Management Advisory Services (DBMAS). The unabridged Guide to Good Practice provides a comprehensive evidence and practice-based overview of BPSD management principles with practical strategies and interventions.

Emerging technologies have the potential to make evidence based recommendations more accessible for use in clinical practice, including care for persons with dementia and BPSD. With the progressive integration of technologies such as Apps into dementia care, research is needed as to their effectiveness for the end user and the potential impact on those with dementia. The Commonwealth Department of Social Services is funding the evaluation of clinicians’ experience of using the BPSD Guide App and UNSW Australia Human Research Ethics Committee has approved this research.

Anonymous user data will be gathered (with consent) via an evaluation and analytics component incorporated into the BPSD Guide App. This information will be supplemented by clinicians’ reports on the usability and usefulness of the App in clinical practice. Results (due for release mid-2015) will provide information about the utility of Apps via hand held devices to assist clinicians in the management of BPSD and, ultimately inform future developments.

Disclaimer
This App was developed to provide a quick reference guide which will assist clinicians in the field when they are presented with behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia (BPSD). This App is provided for general information only and does not claim to reflect all considerations. It is recommended that clinicians consult the unabridged document, Behaviour Management - A Guide to Good Practice: Managing Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (2012) for more detailed information. As with all guidelines, recommendations may not be appropriate for use in all circumstances.
It is strongly recommended that those providing care to a person with dementia seek assessment and guidance from an appropriate health professional before implementing strategies suggested in this App. It is intended that the information included in this App be read in combination with and subject to advice from health professionals experienced in the management of BPSD. The App incorporates information from recent literature and other sources. Every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information at the time of production. While the Guide to Good Practice was prepared after review by an expert advisory committee, an extensive review of the relevant literature and broad consultation, the responsibility for clinical decisions rests with and is borne by the clinician; the authors do not bear any clinical responsibility.