A Clock That Does Not Tell the Time: How the Day Clock Meets the Needs of People Living with Dementia

Abstract

Time disorientation is common in dementia, and can cause difficulty in knowing what day or time it is, or whether it is day or night. Some time orientation products exist to mitigate this, but the need for a simpler product was highlighted by relatives of people with dementia. The Day Clock was developed to meet this need, displaying only the day of the week and part of the day, by working in consultation with people with dementia, carers and healthcare professionals. Questionnaires and user trials were used to fully understand the product requirements. The design was further developed with a commercial partner and supplied as a market product. The Day Clock was evaluated with 123 people with dementia or memory problems as part of a local memory technology lending library, and the majority of goals set using Goal Attainment Scaling by people with dementia and their carers were met as a result of using the Day Clock. There was good acceptability and evidence of efficacy of the Day Clock, in what was one of the largest formal evaluations to date of assistive technology for people with dementia. Understanding the requirements of people living with dementia and their carers, and carrying out iterative design, has underpinned the development of this product and justifies the final design of the Day Clock which gives the day of the week and part of the day but does not tell the time.