# Plans4Care: Personalized Dementia Care On-Demand

> **NIH NIH R44** · PLANS4CARE INC. · 2024 · $1,279,400

## Abstract

PROJECT ABSTRACT
Although >11 million family/friends are caregivers to >6 million people with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and AD-
Related Dementias (AD/ADRD), they do not typically receive personalized education, strategies and support to
manage their own wellbeing and complex dementia-related symptoms. Lack of personalized care contributes
to $321 billion annually in AD/ADRD care costs. In response, our company, Plans4Care, Inc, proposes a Fast-
Track SBIR (PAS-22-196) to build and test a digital platform that delivers personalized care plans to caregivers
on a smartphone, tablet or computer. To generate a personalized care plan, caregivers select a care challenge
(from >50) they seek to address, and respond to brief, easy-to-answer questions (assessment). A novel clinical
algorithm, developed by Plans4Care, maps the challenge and assessment results to the company’s database
of >1,000 evidence-based strategies. A resultant personalized care plan contains education about the care
challenge and specific strategies modifying the environment, communications, tasks, and/or activities.
Caregivers also have access to trained dementia specialists (care advisors) for one-on-one tele-support as
needed. Phase I will develop and evaluate a prototype. Phase I specific aims include: Aim 1: Develop a
clickable prototype with clinical algorithms that map 5 common care challenges to brief assessments and
evidence-based strategies to generate tailored care plans; and Aim 2: Determine feasibility (able to use
platform to identify challenge/generate care plan), acceptability (appeal, appropriateness), and usability (able
to navigate), using focus group and survey methodologies involving validated measures with 25 diverse
caregivers (racially, ethnically, age, relationship, geography). At the conclusion of Phase I, quantitative
milestones (go-no go) to transition to Phase II are: 1) 25 caregivers enrolled; 2) 75% complete assigned
Plans4Care task: onboard, identify care challenge, generate care plan (feasibility); 3) 75% rate Plans4Care
acceptable; and 4) 75% rate navigation easy-to-use (usability). During Phase II, we will ascertain if embedding
Plans4Care into large geriatric primary care practices (part of accountable care organizations) results in
improved caregiver wellbeing and reduced acute care utilization by people with AD/ADRD, and a commercially
viable product. Phase II specific aims include: Aim 3: Incorporate Phase I feasibility feedback to complete
the build out of the platform to address all 50+ care challenges, and develop our solution into a commercial
product; and Aim 4: Conduct a two-group randomized controlled trial (n=160) to evaluate if Plans4Care
improves diverse caregivers’ wellbeing and reduces acute care utilization of people with dementia. This aim
will formally provide evidence for the platform and its implementation in primary care/ACOs. Our company was
competitively selected to participate in the NIA Healthy Aging Start-Up Bootcamp. The co...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11143964
- **Project number:** 4R44AG084365-02
- **Recipient organization:** PLANS4CARE INC.
- **Principal Investigator:** Eric Jutkowitz
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $1,279,400
- **Award type:** 4N
- **Project period:** 2023-09-01 → 2027-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11143964

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11143964, Plans4Care: Personalized Dementia Care On-Demand (4R44AG084365-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11143964. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*