Alison Fenney knows we (or perhaps that should be Wii) have a lot to learn about the
role video games can play in engaging people with dementia.

The McMaster University PhD candidate in neuroscience studied the capacity of
patients
with Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia to learn new physical tasks. Using
the Nintendo Wii bowling game, Fenney completed a nine-week training session with
three patients with dementia who served as case studies. Five months later, the
participants received a follow-up retention test.

“We saw that they not only learned and progressed in the nine-week training
period,
they remembered after a five-month break how to play the game,” said Fenney, who is
jointly working towards an MBA in health service management.

But the most surprising finding was the impact the game had on the participants'
level
of engagement.

“It's one thing to know people can do something, but it's another thing when it
actually
means something in their lives,” she said.

Fenney will present her findings as part of the 2011 Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS)
Research Plenary, which runs Tuesday, May 10 through Thursday, May 12 at McMaster.
The event celebrates the research achievements of graduate students in programs
affiliated with FHS and FHS post-doctoral fellows.

“McMaster University is regarded as one of the top research-intensive universities
in the
world, and our health sciences graduate programs and post-doctoral training
opportunities are key components of this strength – together, they offer excellent
training and experiences in health-related research fields that launch careers,” said
Cathy Hayward, associate dean of graduate studies, health sciences.

“The Health Sciences Research Plenary is a prime opportunity for the Faculty to
showcase and recognize the achievements of our graduate students and post-doctoral
fellows and their capacity for research excellence.

Margaret Leyland, who graduated in November as part
of
the first cohort of the M.Sc. in eHealth program, will present her research on
developing a patient-centred approach to electronic personal health records (ePHRs) for
diabetes self-management.

Leyland used market research techniques to examine patient preferences for
ePHRs.
Using a sample of 150 adults with prediabetes, Type 1 diabetes and Type 2 diabetes,
she found patients preferred Internet-based ePHRs supplied by a physician or specialist.
They also preferred to exchange health information with their physician or nurse once a
month. Monthly service fees were considered the most important attribute of the ePHRs.

Of course most people want a free ePHR, but when we ran our preference data through simulations based on real ePHRs we
were able to show that people are actually willing to pay for it,” Leyland said, adding that $11.45 per month was considered an
acceptable level of payment among the group.

“Diabetes is becoming a huge economic burden and our challenge in the e-health world is to help reduce this burden by
designing and delivering health-care services that are safe, meaningful and sustainable. We've shown that an ePHR service based
on patient preferences has some utility and that patients see the value in that.”

Poster sessions for the FHS Research Plenary will take place in the Jan and Mien
Heersink
Reading Pavilion in the Health Sciences Library, from May 10-12. Oral sessions will be
held May 10 at the Michael G. DeGroote Centre for Learning and Discovery.