Family FINGER: a Pilot Randomised Controlled Trial of Healthy Lifestyle Intervention Versus Standard Care Among Older Caregivers
The Family FINGER study enrolls caregivers aged 65 or older who live with and care for a spouse with cognitive impairment in North Savo, Finland (estimated n=100). This intervention builds on the FINGER study, which showed improved cognitive performance and health benefits, including better health-related quality of life. The intervention will be tailored to meet caregivers' specific needs. The overall aim of the Family FINGER trial is to assess the efficacy of this intervention on the positive mental health of spousal caregivers. Specific research questions are as follows: 1. What is the efficacy of the Family FINGER intervention on mental health? 2. What is the efficacy of the Family FINGER intervention on secondary outcome measures: dementia risk, cognition, and lifestyles?
• Aged 65 and older.
• Caregiver for a spouse with cognitive impairment.
• Live in the same household with the care recipient.
• The presence of modifiable risk factors for health: at least one self-reported lifestyle-related risk factor, or self-reported CAIDE dementia risk scores of 6 or higher, or a self-reported burdensome caregiving situation.