Brain+ begins commercial pilot
with volunteers from the DaneAge Association
- Volunteers play a key role in caring for people with dementia in target markets like Denmark, Germany, and United Kingdom
- The pilot project will test the use of the Brain+ product, ‘CST1-Therapist Companion’, in a use case where a volunteer facilitates CST sessions with elderlies at home in a one-to-one setting (as opposed to group-based CST). This explores a new commercial opportunity (volunteer services use of CST) and benefits product R&D for the at-home use product, ‘CST-Home Care’
- DaneAge (Ældre Sagen), counting 930.000 members, uses volunteers to care for both elderlies and people with dementia
Brain+, a pioneer in the development of digital therapeutics for Alzheimer’s disease, is excited to announce the launch of a pilot project with DaneAge (Ældre Sagen) to test the use of the Brain+ CST-Therapist Companion to enable volunteers from the association to deliver Cognitive Stimulation Therapy (CST) to the members of the association.
Lotte Kofoed Hansen, Demenskonsulent, Ældre Sagen
“We are excited about trying Cognitive Stimulation Therapy to facilitate stimulating conversations between our volunteers and our members. Our hope is that these structured conversations will result in more interactions and engagement and could be a valuable service to our members.”
In the pilot, 12 volunteers have received tablets with Brain+ CST Therapist Companion software and will over the following 3 months be using this in their visits to the homes of the association’s members. At each visit, the volunteer will use the Brain+ CST-Therapist Companion to facilitate the structured CST conversations and activities. During each session, the volunteer will guide the elderly through a series of interaction-based activities that stimulate the brain broadly. The aim is to collect usability data and evidence for CST delivered at home by volunteers.
CST is rapidly being adopted globally and Brain+ is a first-mover in digitalized CST
CST has been shown to improve quality of life and cognitive functioning, including memory, attention, language, and problem-solving abilities in people with mild to moderate dementia. Analogue (non-CST) is usually delivered in a group by a CST-trained therapist. CST has been recommended for global implementation by the World Health Organization and the World Alzheimer’s Report 2022, and Brain+ is in a first-mover position to both help and take advantage of this global momentum for CST adoption, working with the global CST key opinion leaders and experts to digitalize CST for more efficiency, effect, and scalability.
Additional information
About the DaneAge Association
DaneAge was founded in 1986 and is a not-for-profit, direct membership organization. DaneAge is independent, non-partisan and neutral regarding party politics, religion, and ethnic origins.
The organization has 930.000 members and membership is open to all adults (age 18+). DaneAge has 215 local chapters across Denmark and more than 20.000 volunteers working in the local chapters, doing voluntary social work, providing local membership activities, local advocacy, etc.
1) Cognitive stimulation therapy (CST) for the treatment of cognitive symptoms of dementia. Cognitive Stimulation Therapy uses psychosocial interaction to stimulate cognition and create new associations via existing memories, stimulation of memory networks, and imagination for people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s. It also works to increase the quality of the patient’s interaction with their caregivers, as it facilitates a structured way to engage socially. It provides an orientation to make the participants feel safe and self-confident, stimulating cognition through multiple sensory activations, and using reminiscence as an aid to the here and now. Brain+ digitalized version of the CST product is designed to be used at home or in a clinic. It is currently undergoing clinical trial validation to prepare for commercialization.
