Lost puppy: Towards a playful intervention for wandering dementia patients

Abstract

Many nursing homes for dementia patients struggle with residents that wander towards the exit with the intention of leaving. Several types of interventions have been used to deal with this issue. Unfortunately, many of them are quite forceful, or are unsuitable for the specific context of certain nursing homes. In this paper, we investigate the possibility to using a more playful persuasive intervention. The design itself is in the form of a lost puppy, equipped with several actuators and sensors, that has to be brought ‘home’, in order to steer residents unknowingly away from the exit. Our first pilot indicated that residents noticed the puppy and showed interest in the device, and might be distracted from the exit. However, the puppy in its current form did not yet lead the residents away from the exit. Based on our contextual analyses, related work, and received feedback, we share our design insights which could be helpful for creating playful interventions for people with dementia.