Innovating a Personalized Reinforcement Interface to Motivate Engagement (PRIME) Among Care Partners for People Living with Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia in their Communities

/ ABSTRACT By 2050 in the U.S., an estimated 13 million individuals will be impacted by ADRD. The rise in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia (ADRD) cases presents a significant challenge for both people living with Alzheimer’s and related diseases (PLWAD) and their care partners. Even now, over 16 million care partners of PLWAD (generally unpaid family members) – and the healthcare system itself – face considerable pressure and strain to support PLWAD, and that pressure will only grow in the future. However, a notable gap exists in tailored solutions for care partner's needs. Immediate actions are needed to develop a comprehensive support intervention to improve care partner self-efficacy, which can lead to relieving the burdens of caregiving and ensuring their well-being. For this Fast Track SBIR project, we propose the proposed AWC-PRIME (Personalized Reinforcement Interface to Motivate Engagement) product builds upon our existing Adult Wellbeing Checkup (AWC), a platform that facilitates wellbeing assessments, referrals, and personalized recommendation plans for older adults, including care partners. AWC-PRIME extends and complements our initial AWC platform for older adults by providing a dynamic companion app that validates and supports behavioral changes for CPs. The app ensures that CPs are not only well-informed but also continuously motivated and supported in their self-care and stress-management efforts. AWC-PRIME will 1) support CPs in identifying their level of needs, 2) encourage SMART goal setting through MI, 3) develop personalized, theoretically-supported self-management plans, 4) support goal attainment through MI and tailored coaching, 5) scale AI-powered coaching, and 6) provide pathways to peer support online or through local community-based organizations for additional support and reinforcement. Innovations include building high degrees of interactivity digitally (e.g., via chatbots and two-way messaging) and seamlessly interweaving multiple modalities to increase engagement. Our Fast Track application’s Phase 1 with Aim 1 to co-create the AWC-PRIME prototype and Aim 2 to assess feasibility of the AWC-PRIME prototype. For Phase 2, we will revise and finalize AWC-PRIME in Aim 3 and conduct an RCT in Aim 4. The short-term impact of the project through Phase I will involve the co-creating and initial testing of the AWC- PRIME prototype. Additionally, the feasibility testing of the AWC-PRIME prototype and Phase I findings will provide the foundation for further refinement in Phase II. Ultimately, we aim to provide a tool for care partners to receive personalized support through motivational interviewing techniques, while taking action on their SMART goals, which care partners find both easy-to-use and effective in improving self-efficacy. Project Number: 1R44AG097241-01 | Fiscal Year: 2025 | NIH Institute/Center: National Institute on Aging (NIA) | Principal Investigator: Diana Yin | Institution: BELLAGE, INC., SUNNYSIDE, NY | Award Amount: $499,396 | Activity Code: R44 | Study Section: Special Emphasis Panel[ZAG1 ZIJ-5 (M2)] View on NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11255595