# Using Technology to Support Care Partners for Persons with Alzheimer's Disease:  Tele-STELLA

> **NIH NIH R01** · OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY · 2022 · $596,958

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
The purpose of this NIH Stage 1B mixed methods study is to test the feasibility, acceptability, fidelity and
efficacy of a telehealth-based intervention designed to reduce stress for family care partners (CP) for those
with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). ADRD extracts physical, mental and financial tolls
from CPs caring for affected family members. In the later stages of disease, behavioral and psychological
symptoms of dementia (BPSD) can contribute to CP burden, increasing the risk of depression in CPs and long-
term care placement for those with ADRD. Interventions that help CPs manage BPSD are available, but
access to them is limited by cost, distance, care demands and stigma. Further, most technology-based
interventions are not tailored to the later stages of disease, when BPSD are more common. In the proposed
study we aim to refine and optimize the multi-site Tele-STELLA (Support via TEchnology: Living and Learning
with Advancing ADRD) intervention. Tele-STELLA is a video-conference-based intervention that provides
education and peer support for CPs caring for family members in the moderate to late stages of ADRD. The
intervention, which CPs access from their own homes, begins with one-to-one training with a Tele-STELLA
Guide (a nurse or psychologist), then advances to peer-based education and support modeled on the ECHO
(Extension of Community Healthcare Outcomes) template. The intervention is specifically for CPs, no care-
recipients with ADRD will be in this study. However, the skills CPs develop in Tele-STELLA will be integrated
into the care of the person with ADRD, thus reducing behavioral symptoms. The foundation of this proposal
was laid with two pilot studies which assessed early versions of Tele-STELLA. This mixed-methods study will
assess the feasibility, acceptability, treatment fidelity and efficacy of Tele-STELLA. We hypothesize that the
Tele-STELLA intervention will be feasible and acceptable and will reduce the frequency of behavioral
symptoms in persons with ADRD, thus improving CP affective symptoms (burden, depression, grief) and
quality of life for CPs and those with ADRD. We will recruit rural, African American and white CPs (n=150) from
three sites (Oregon, Kentucky and Georgia). Feasibility will be assessed quantitatively by measuring
attendance and completion rates. Qualitative data from focus groups will augment the feasibility quantitative
findings and provide feedback on consumer acceptability. Content experts will evaluate treatment fidelity by
reviewing a subsample of video-taped sessions. We will measure efficacy of Tele-TELLA on reducing the
frequency of behavioral and psychological symptoms in persons with ADRD using pre-post assessments and
linear regression strategies. Our long term goal is to reduce the psychological burden CPs experience by
providing the Tele-STELLA intervention for any CP who has access to a computer and an internet connection.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10348752
- **Project number:** 5R01AG067546-02
- **Recipient organization:** OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Allison Lindauer
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $596,958
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-02-15 → 2026-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10348752

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10348752, Using Technology to Support Care Partners for Persons with Alzheimer's Disease:  Tele-STELLA (5R01AG067546-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-21 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10348752. Licensed CC0.

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