A low-tech intervention and therapy for large groups of persons with dementia

The Memory Magic concept (copyrighted, patent pending) is an innovative, engaging activity for an individual or a group of 10 to 20 or more persons with cognitive disabilities in both institutional and home care settings. A single activity staffer can run the activity leaving other staff to complete other tasks. One hundred persons with dementia were observed in 3 states and in each of 3 different care settings; long-term care, adult day care, and assisted living. At least three observations playing Memory Magic and three observations playing a comparable activity were completed for each participant. MMSE and WRAT-3 scores were also collected. Engagement was measured using the Menorah Park Engagement Scale (Camp, 2002). The game was shown to be significantly more effective for constructively engaging people with dementia in all three settings. Video of participants playing the game will be shown as well as detailed results of the study.