title: [Mobile dementia counseling as low-threshold assistance for caregiving relatives].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Comprehensive and easily accessible information and counseling for people with dementia and their caregivers can improve home care in many ways; however, for various reasons the affected persons rarely seek help and advice. When advice is sought the caregiving situation at home is mostly already in a crisis. The Rhine-Erft district, a rural area in Germany, improved its network of dementia care services by establishing a mobile gerontopsychiatric counseling service with a special focus on dementia. A multiprofessional and interdisciplinary team consisting of professional and voluntary personnel in a specially equipped bus offers free counseling at several public places in the district at least once a month.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The project was accompanied and scientifically evaluated by the authors of this article from 2012 to 2015. The German Ministry of Health funded the evaluation. The main objective of the scientific evaluation was to examine how to implement the mobile counseling in order to improve the situation for people with dementia and their informal caregivers.
  
  
  METHODS
  A mixture of quantitative (e.g. standardized questionnaires) and qualitative (e.g. semi-structured interviews) methods was employed.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The data show that the mobile counseling service fulfills an important role in the navigation into the healthcare system and contributes to the easing of caregiver burden. In particular, the low threshold of the service proved to be very effective. The mobile counseling service can reach those caregivers who would have sought professional advice too late or not at all.
authors: Fakultät für Erziehungswissenschaften, Psychologie und Soziologie, Institut für Soziologie, Lehrgebiet Soziale Gerontologie mit dem Schwerpunkt Lebenslaufforschung, Technische Universität Dortmund, Emil-Figge-Str. 50, 44227, Dortmund, Deutschland. monika.reichert@fk12.tu-dortmund.de.
authors: Monika
authors: M
authors: Reichert
authors: Fakultät für Erziehungswissenschaften, Psychologie und Soziologie, Institut für Soziologie, Lehrgebiet Soziale Gerontologie mit dem Schwerpunkt Lebenslaufforschung, Technische Universität Dortmund, Emil-Figge-Str. 50, 44227, Dortmund, Deutschland. sarah.hampel@tu-dortmund.de.
authors: S
authors: S
authors: Hampel
authors: Forschungsgesellschaft für Gerontologie e.V./Institut für Gerontologie an der TU Dortmund, Dortmund, Deutschland.
authors: V
authors: V
authors: Reuter
mesh_terms: D017028:Caregivers / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology*; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003704:Dementia / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D037001:Directive Counseling / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008952:Mobile Health Units / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017146:Models, Organizational; D020380:Needs Assessment; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D014600:Utilization Review
keywords: Community mental health services; Evaluation; Geriatrics; Patient acceptance of health care; Rural health services