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This study is led by the Azrieli Adults Neurodevelopmental Centre at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).
The NTG Canada has provided input and information to the Dementia Screening Project including assistance with recruiting agencies affiliated with NTG Canada Affiliated Provincial Trainers. These collaborative connections and efforts are an important part of the work of the NTG Canada.
The dementia screening project aims to evaluate the implementation of a dementia screening tool for adults with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities (IDD) called the Early Detection Screen for Dementia (NTG-EDSD) in Canada. While many agencies and care providers have been trained to use this tool, we don’t yet know how often it’s being used in Canada or how well it’s working. Thus, this study aims to understand how the IDD dementia screening program is working for staff and family caregivers in three ways:
- Case Study Across Nine Agencies
- National Staff Survey
- National Family Caregiver Survey
Case Studies:
The case study component of the study encompasses nine disability agencies in four provinces that participated in NTG training and are using the NTG-EDSD tool in different capacities. The study team will visit each site to learn how the program is being implemented by creating an agency profile, reviewing anonymized completed NTG-EDSD screeners, and speaking with people involved in the screening process – including agency staff, healthcare providers, decision-makers, adults with IDD, and family caregivers- through interviews or focus groups.
National Surveys:
The two surveys for staff and family caregivers will be launched in 2026. The staff survey will invite health and social service providers who work with older adults with IDD to share their experiences with supporting adults as they age and dementia screening as well. The family survey will invite family caregivers of adults with IDD aged 40 years and older to share how they are involved in dementia screening and what supports they need.
For more information, please visit the study website.