Introduction/Rationale: Subtle difficulties in performing complex everyday activities can precede cognitive impairment. Screening tools can assist early detection of dementia, but few standardised, performance-based measures exist. Some functional cognitive (FC) screens discriminate dementia from no dementia; none help with mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Objectives: We aim to 1) examine if FC screens detect subtle functional difficulties in older people with normal cognition (NC) and MCI; 2) compare the ability of FC screens vs FC screen + cognitive screen to discriminate between diagnostic groups; and 3) explore participant experience of FC screens.
Methods: Ninety-nine older adults with NC, MCI or dementia are being recruited. Measures include the Large Allen’s Cognitive Level Screen (Version5), Menu Task, cognitive measures and Performance Assessment of Self-Care Skills (PASS) shopping and medication tasks. Participants are being surveyed about their experience of FC screens. Our analyses will classify participants as impaired/unimpaired based on published PASS cut-off scores. Logistic regressions and receiver operating characteristic curve analyses will assess sensitivity based on areas under the curves and develop cut-off scores. Qualitative survey data will undergo thematic analysis to identify themes of participant experience.
Results/Practice implications: Sixty participants have been recruited. Preliminary data analysis is underway. Recruitment continues until December 2025.
Conclusion/Contribution to the occupational therapy profession: This project examines the discriminative validity of a novel FC screen, comparing this with an existing measure. We will explore whether a ‘composite screening measure’ improves discriminative ability. It will set the stage for application and wider testing in multi-disciplinary settings.