research proposal

Research problem and Literature Review:

Literature Review

The research question or problem that will be explored here is how the lack of

memory care facilities and lack of financial assistance for those who live within the low

to middle class income, affects those with Alzheimer's and Dementia. Also, how it will

affect their caregivers. Many individuals who suffer from these diseases and their

families find themselves with no options when they cannot provide the care at home, or

cannot afford to place them in a memory care facility. In most cases, those who find

themselves in this situation end up homeless because the individual walks out of the home and

gets lost; or the family has reached a breaking point, and gives them over to the state.

The individual then becomes a burden to the state and to the taxpayers because the family

surrenders them to adult protective services for facility placement.

Why This Study Matters

The reason that this is a problem is an important study is because there are five million

Americans who are suffering from Alzheimer's and 35.6 million people who suffer from

Dementia. What is even more concerning is that every year, there are 7.7 million new cases. It

has been projected that there will be a significant increase of people that will suffer from

Alzheimer's and Dementia. Around the year 2030 about 65.7 million people will be diagnosed

with these diseases, and by the year 2050, it will rise to 115.4 million

("Geoffreybeenechallenge.org", 2013).

The cost of memory care facilities is astronomical, especially to those who live within the

low to middle-class income. Room, board, and care at a memory care facility can range

anywhere from $3,000 per month to $8,000 per month. What is more alarming is that

some facilities do not provide all of the services that an individual might need. These

services could include respite care, housekeeping, medication management, or

transportation.

Not only is the cost for care in these facilities high, but most facilities do not have any

rooms or beds available. This leaves many individuals and families in a hard predicament: what

are they to do when there are no options? It is easy to see why so many individuals with

Alzheimer's and Dementia end up homeless and wandering the streets. Something needs to be

done to provide the financial assistance and the care that this target population needs so that it is

not a burden on the families, and on the taxpayers.

Alzheimer's and Other Memory Disease Statistics

· 5 million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer's

· Alzheimer’s is number 6 in the leading causes of death in the U.S.

· 500 people die of Alzheimer’s each year

· 1 in 3 seniors die from Alzheimer's or Dementia (Gerace, 2014)

Women are an epicenter of Alzheimer's, and have a 9% higher risk of developing the

disease than breast cancer. (Alzheimer Association, 2014)

Memory care is an area that deserves considerable attention when it comes to working

with aging adults who are in need of or depend on care services or facilities. While care

facilities are available in abundance, Verhey et al (2011) stated, finding a facility that

addresses and focuses on specific areas such as memory care are difficult to come by.

While many factors play a role in defining a care facility, specialties such as memory care

to address dementia and Alzheimer's are just examples of what families of aging adults

need assistance with and reassurance on, in order to maintain the wellbeing of the elderly

or family member. How does the financial burdens of caregiving need affect caregivers emotional stress and caregiver burnout, and what are ways to lessen those stressors?"

Care services in the past were often generalized as simply nursing homes or assisted

living communities. There were no specific focuses in memory care, nor, was there any

assistance or resources available to help aging adults with these needs or qualified professionals

for consultation. Security will provide a precautionary measure to check the state of individuals

and send assistance immediately, should it be needed.

Scope/rationale for the proposal or importance of the study

Statement of the research question /hypothesis/research problem (Michele)

The research question or problem that will be explored here is how the lack of

memory care facilities and lack of financial assistance for those who live within the low

to middle class income, affects those with Alzheimer's and Dementia. Also, how it will

affect their caregivers. Many individuals who suffer from these diseases and their

families find themselves with no options when they cannot provide the care at home, or

cannot afford to place them in a memory care facility. In most cases, those who find

themselves in this situation end up homeless because the individual walks out of the home and

get lost; or the family has reached a breaking point, and gives them over to the state.

The individual then becomes a burden to the state and to the taxpayers because the family

surrenders them to adult protective services for facility placement.

Methodology

Participants or target population (age, gender, inclusion and exclusion criteria) (needs to be tweeked)

The participants & target population that will be interviewed and surveyed are those who

suffer from Alzheimer’s and Dementia as well as their caregivers. The gender that will be

interviewed and surveyed are both male and female. Inclusion criteria are defined as clients in

the case study who currently suffer with Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Also incorporated into the

inclusion criteria are the primary caregivers. There is no exclusion criteria necessary in this case

study.

Recruitment and informed consent process

Sampling method and sample size

Research design, including independent variable(s) and dependent variable(s)

Instrumentation or data collection methods (including data collection time points, reliability and validity)

Proposed data analyses ?Descriptive statistics

Inferential statistics

Predicted findings

References

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines and include a title page and a reference page (No abstract is necessary).