Smartphone app which could replace lost memories for people with dementia has won funding

A smartphone app could replace lost memories for people with dementia after receiving £100,000 worth of funding from the Alzheimer’s Society to help bring the product to market.

The How Do I? app allows loved ones to record explanations of photos of family memories and shows users how to carry out everyday tasks such as boiling a kettle when their phone scans a sticker on an object.

Using contactless technology, this scan links to a pre-recorded video of a loved one explaining how to do the task linked to the sticker to remind the user.

How Do I? uses a combination of two apps. The creator studio enables loved ones to record videos about how to do a task. The player app is the one the person affected by dementia uses to scan an object, which then brings up the video explaining how to use it.

At the moment Android users do not have to remember how to launch the app to get the information they need. They simply need to tap the device and scan the brightly coloured sticker. However Apple phones still have to have the app open and launched at this stage.

CEO and Co-founder Taryl Law said: “This app helps with things that are important to people affected by dementia and their loved ones. They want to be able to cook for themselves for longer, take care of personal care for longer, or create a video diary to be able to see what they’ve done in the day, looking at where they have been and who they have been with.”

She added that while they are currently recruiting a small group of around 15 testers to give feedback on the technology, they hope they will be able to improve the user experience and interface throughout the course of the year.

“Our success is measured by if they are able to feel successful being able to complete a task they want to be able to do for themselves. The app is completely flexible and up to the person affected by dementia and their carers,” she said.

The news comes as the Alzheimer’s Society announced the number of people with dementia who are currently living alone is set to double in the next 20 years to nearly 250,000. Jeremy Hughes, Chief Executive of Alzheimer’s Society, added: “Technology and innovation has the power to transform lives, and we want to harness this power for the 850,000 people living with dementia across the UK.

"While we work tirelessly to find a cure for this devastating disease, technologies like How do I?’ can help improve care and lives for everyone living with dementia today. Through assistive technology we can transform our understanding of how to best manage dementia - but we need everyone to take part to help us find the most promising and revolutionary ideas. Whether you work in an office, a lab, are living with dementia, or are a full time carer, unite with us by submitting your ideas for a product to help people living with the condition.”