Multisensory Stimulation Home Spaces (MSS) based on Snoezelen principles - pilot study

• Grant number: 22/16287-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: April 01, 2023
• End date: December 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy
• Principal Investigator: Marcia Maria Pires Camargo Novelli
• Grantee: Beatriz Zima Borsari Mauricio
• Host Institution: Instituto de Saúde e Sociedade (ISS). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus Baixada Santista. Santos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: Multisensory stimulation (MSS) aims to stimulate the senses such as vision, hearing, touch, taste, smell, vestibular and proprioceptive systems that may be areas affected by dementia. The 24-hour Snoezelen spaces in home environments aim to offer a proposed MSS intervention for seniors with dementia syndromes. In addition, studies on this therapy, its benefits and effects both for the elderly living in the community and for their caregivers/family members, are scarce.Objective: To understand and evaluate the benefits of Snoezelen sensory stimulation in home settings of community-dwelling elderly.Materials and Methods: The 24-hour Snoezelen intervention will be conducted over three/four months, in 9 sessions. The sessions will be organized in stages: The 1st stage, involves the evaluation process, performed in the 1st week, which will consist of two evaluation sessions that include home assessment, establishment of sensory preferences and sensory profile of the elderly. The 2nd stage will be carried out from the 2nd to the 5th week with the implementation of the 24-hour Snoezelen sessions that aim to teach caregivers how to use the Snoezelen space with two focuses: stimulation and relaxation. The initial session will be determined by the demands presented by the caregiver and the elderly regarding the need to start with a relaxation or stimulation session. The third stage involves the follow-up of the implementation of the post-training sessions for caregivers that will be developed from the 6th to the 9th week with 3 sessions. The interval between the 3 sessions will be 15 days so that the caregivers can practice what they have learned during the training. To analyze the impact of the Home Spaces of MRE the effect size will be used considering the averages in the NPI before and after the Intervention. Measures of variance will be applied to evaluate the impact of MRE home stimulation in relation to time (pre- and post-intervention). The degree of significance was set to values of p<0.05