There are over 200 caregiver interventions documented in academic studies that are evaluated in controlled settings, but very few have actually been translated for real-world delivery at point of care¹. In fact, due to the lengthy and incremental process that is required in traditional academic settings, only 14% of evidence ever makes it into clinical practice².  Further troubling is the fact that interventions that do get translated into real-world care settings often see drop-out rates ranging from 60-80%³. In a recent review, Gitlin, Jutkowitz, and Gaugler (2020)¹ concluded that successful real-world implementation of dementia interventions highly depends on the adaptation of the program to fit local contexts and the integration of these programs into daily workflows. 

We have seen this conclusion hold true, as our clients who have integrated Trualta into their existing workflow have seen high success and engagement regardless of their different settings. To learn more about how our clients integrate Trualta into their existing workflow, we asked staff members at our partner organizations who have been successful at leading and navigating this integration to share their experiences with us in a fireside chat webinar. 

Best Practices From Across the Nation 

Recruiting Caregivers 

If there is a caregiver that could really benefit from the platform, but they aren’t ready to engage with an online tool, many of our partners have found it helpful to download a module PDF and print it for them. This often gets them thinking and can even lead them to feel more ready to engage with an online tool. Similarly, many of our partners emphasized not to give up if someone doesn’t want to engage right away, as continued outreach efforts increase the chances that they’ll remember Trualta is there for them when they really need it. 

To prevent getting overwhelmed, some of our partners recommend starting with caregivers that you already serve and expanding from there. Another useful tip shared was to create a customizable spreadsheet to fit your needs and be able to more easily keep track of every caregiver.

Intake Process & Onboarding

An early strategy that is great for engagement is facilitating a short demo while onboarding caregivers. Staff can do this virtually by sharing their screen to show caregivers how to navigate the portal while also directing them to modules that are directly relevant to their caregiving situation. Our partners have found that this strategy works well for all caregivers, and that it works particularly well for caregivers that are initially hesitant about their ability to use an online tool. Once they see how simple it is and how relevant the modules are to them, they are more likely to continue to log in on their own. Some of our partners have even gotten several caregivers on one call when they are pressed for time. 

Engaging Caregivers 

Our partners recommend using what you know about your caregivers’ care situations to support engagement on the platform. They find that this helps them give each caregiver individualized attention and tailored recommendations that they can get a lot of value from. This is in line with the well-established research findings that support the use of tailored approaches for maximized engagement⁴. On days when staff are too busy to individually recommend personalized content to their caregivers, Trualta’s system has a built-in algorithm that is able to send relevant recommendations too. 

Leveraging Community Partners 

Some of our most successful partners are those that have made strong connections with formal and informal community partners like local Alzheimer Associations, local libraries, and adult day centers. They take the time to give these community partners an overview presentation of Trualta so that they can identify caregivers that could benefit from Trualta and refer them. Often, partners don’t have to look too far for these connections, as their agencies already have many community partners and channels — the key is communicating with them and making yourself available to them.

Managing Caseloads

Staff at our partner organizations are very busy. As one of them shared, “Trualta is now incorporated into all we do, but it is not all we do”. To manage their busy caseloads while using Trualta to their advantage, our partners have found many ways to integrate it into their existing regular workflows. For example, one agency designated a Tuesday of every month to be Trualta Tuesday in their peer counseling group. Caregivers can ask questions about the modules they see online and can also make connections with each other.

An emphasized tip that our partners shared was to use the staff dashboard to your advantage — there’s no need to do extra work! The staff dashboard can tell you what modules your caregivers are looking at so that the next time you have a conversation with them, you can suggest something related to that topic, offer them another related local resource in the county that can help them, or simply check in on them if they haven’t logged on in a while. It is a quick way to get an overview of what your caregivers are dealing with and how they are doing.

Marketing

TV ads and press releases have been a great success for our partners. To make the most of the inbound interest from these sources, our partners recommend following up with interested caregivers right away to show them that there is a real person behind the scenes and to let them know you’ll be sending them information promptly. Even partners who don’t use TV ads have found marketing incredibly useful, as Trualta has plenty of customizable digital materials on the Staff Space that they use to their advantage through their own channels. 

We would like to thank Kathy Wehr, Caregiver Support Program Manager at the Howard County Office on Aging and Independence, Department of Community Resources and Services, Karen Enriquez, Family Caregiver Support Coordinator at the SEAGO Area Agency on Aging, Ashley Adam, Caregiver Services Coordinator at Area Agency on Aging PSA2, and Madeline Huggins, Trualta Caregiver & Care Transitions Support Specialist at the Central Ohio Area Agency on Aging, for sharing their valuable insight and expertise. 

To request a copy of the Fireside Chat recording and learn more about how Trualta can be integrated into your existing workflow, contact Leda Rosenthal, Director of Growth, at Leda@Trualta.com or 1-800-214-5085 ext 1.

References

1. Gitlin, L. N., Jutkowitz, E., & Gaugler, J. E. (2020). Dementia caregiver intervention research now and into the future: Review and recommendations. Commissioned paper for the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine NIA Decadal Study.
2. Gitlin, L. N. (2013). Introducing a new intervention: an overview of research phases and common challenges. American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 67(2), 177-184.
3. Yeager, C. M., & Benight, C. C. (2018). If we build it, will they come? Issues of engagement with digital health interventions for trauma recovery. Mhealth, 4.
4. Short, C., Rebar, A., Plotnikoff, R., & Vandelanotte, C. (2015). Designing engaging online behaviour change interventions: a  proposed model of user engagement.