Android tablet game development for dementia patient

Abstract

As the old population is growing older, a huge supply of increased health care is needed, and the time spent per day watching after the patient may be decreased due to various reasons. Many of the elderly develop some sort of dementia when growing older. Non-pharmacological management of dementia puts a load on the caregivers of dementia patients. Caregivers often need to assist their patients with activities in daily living. At the same time, they are encouraged to promote functional independence. With the use of mobile technology, functional independence can be increased among dementia patients, at the same time decreasing the stress put on to caregivers. Despite of the intense research on dementia, a cure remains elusive. But numerous studies and researches show the benefits of staying mentally active. Mental commitment is consistently linked with a decreased risk of a decline in thinking skills. As a result, games with brain training may help slow down memory loss and mental deterioration. Mobile technologies are very confusing for elderly people who did not grow up with them. However, some games played with some assistance may help the patients remain focused and processing information. In this project, a game application was developed to improve the treatment quality for dementia patients. The game application, Memory Frenzy, comes with two memory games running on an Android based tablet with very visual and touch-friendly interface which allows for caregivers to assist and help these dementia patients. Our goal is to develop Android games to reduce the risk of dementia as well as for people suffering from this syndrome which will help them slow down the deterioration of the illness.