iPad for elderly/dementia

southrnflower, in hospice I work with end stage Alzheimer's and as such, I use pretty simple apps because anything too advanced becomes frustrating. The list provided above is an excellent beginning - I find that my patients respond best to three types of apps; Expression (Drawing and Doodling), Experiential (Nature, Observation, Life Skills), and Music (Listening and Creating). The music ones are very effective because the reward for touching the screen is immediate. One not listed above that my patients particularly enjoy is a guitar, they love strumming. I recently made amazing progress with a very closed off patient and an app that offers a banjo called MisoMusic. One app that is not listed that my patients love and ask to do again and again is Cake Doodle. There are several put out by one company that allow you to add ingredients from a recipe, mix the batter, bake the cake and then decorate it (also cookie doodle, candy doodle, and another that is for frozen treats). My 5 year old dtr LOVES this game and I tried it on a lark with a woman one day and the response was incredible. I feel, without any scientific proof, that there is some sort of body memory related to cooking that I might be tapping into, but that is just a guess. The app is very entertaining. Don't overlook the beauty of Pandora either. Being able to play a genre of music for a person at will is incredible valuable, especially with this population. For someone who has LT memories it can assist them greatly! Does this help.

Also - I echo your sentiments. That is a lot of hits, there is clearly an interest and a need for information in this area.I am going to look into a way I can conduct some research, but I current work for a "for profit" organization which would make this a challenge.

Stay tuned!