Anyone who has experienced it themselves knows how challenging it is: dementia patients need intensive care and round-the-clock support and therefore place huge demands on family carers. In most cases, it is spouses or (adult, sometimes older) "children" who look after their parents. Due to demographic trends, the number of people with dementia, who in turn have to be cared for by their relatives, is increasing. According to the latest Dementia Report 2025, which was recently published, around 170,000 people in Austria are living with some form of dementia, almost two thirds of whom are women. By 2050, it is estimated that there could be over 290,000. Almost all of them require 24-hour care.
In many cases, family carers are overwhelmed by the situation, especially as dementia progresses and patients become forgetful. According to recent studies, a third of family carers are at risk of depression. This is precisely where the DemiCare+ project, led by the AIT Centre for Technology Experience, comes in. The aim is to support family carers with digital solutions and innovative training to counteract depression in a targeted manner. A user-centred app was already developed in the preliminary DemiCare project (http://demicare.app), which aims to relieve the burden on family carers and strengthen their caring skills. The app has so far included interactive modules on topics such as dementia-friendly communication, coping strategies for everyday care with a person with dementia and tips on self-care.
Focus on personalised support and depression prevention
"By expanding the digital offering, which we want to develop together with the project partners and users, we can address the often very challenging situation even more precisely and provide family members of people with dementia with an assistive help-to-self-help offering," says Markus Garschall, project manager and researcher at the AIT Centre for Technology Experience, explaining the goal.
The DemiCare+ project is part of the Social Experience research area at the AIT Centre for Technology Experience. The aim is to drive forward technological innovations that meet social needs, promote social justice, diversity and equal opportunities (Diversity Experience), improve resilience and sustainability and increase people's well-being. The aim of the research is to develop human-centred innovations in the spirit of digital humanism and to give everyone access to digital services and solutions (accessibility).
In the THCS-funded DemiCare+ project (https://www.thcspartnership.eu ), which was launched in April 2025, researchers at the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology are collaborating with partner organisations from Romania and the Netherlands. A particular focus is on developing an integrated solution for the prevention of depression among caring relatives. The AI-based digital solution is designed to respond individually to problems and everyday challenges and to provide active, preventive and personalised support to relatives.
The project will also examine the resilience of family carers in order to deliver sustainable, effective solutions. ‘We also plan to include data and indicators that indicate depression at an early stage, such as sleep duration and number of social contacts, in the project,’ explains Markus Garschall. ‘This is a big step towards providing greater support for caring relatives,’ says Garschall.
Improving the resilience of family carers
Micro-interventions based on positive psychology (PP) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) are used to improve the resilience and well-being of carers. To this end, both risk factors such as reducing negative chain reactions (e.g. feelings of loss and grief) and protective factors such as building self-confidence and knowledge (e.g. caring skills) are addressed.
Based on the information and training offered in the existing DemiCare app, DemiCare+ aims to expand the digital offering by connecting to local care communities and integrating relevant local care services. In many cases, better coordination and cooperation between family carers and professional care facilities is still required. "It is important that family carers can also use professional support and facilities such as day centres for people with dementia in order to be relieved and have "free time"," emphasises Wolfgang Kratky, project team member from the Geriatric Health Centres of the City of Graz.
Evaluation in three countries - creating European guidelines
From the very beginning, carers have been at the centre of the project and are actively involved on an ongoing basis. In addition to the implementation of the DemiCare+ app, the accompanying evaluation and assessment of the effectiveness of the digital solution for depression prevention in the three countries of Austria, the Netherlands and Romania will take centre stage by integrating it into the local care contexts (e.g. psychiatric hospital, GP, community services). The aim is to integrate the DemiCare+ solution into the European health and social systems. "In addition, the results of the practical phase should also enable the creation of general guidelines for the introduction of preventive digital health measures for carers of dementia patients throughout Europe," says Markus Garschall, describing the vision.
About the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology
About the AIT Center for Technology Experience
About the AIT
Research & development is the central driver of innovation for industry, the economy and society, secures jobs and prosperity and thus strengthens Austria as a business location. Applied research also provides solutions for the major challenges of our time. The AIT Austrian Institute of Technology is Austria's largest research and technology organisation with more than 1,500 employees working on the key infrastructure issues of the future. The AIT focuses on the two interlinked research priorities of "sustainable and resilient infrastructures", particularly in the areas of energy, transport and health, and the "digital transformation of industry and society", working closely with industry and clients from public institutions.