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Currently, 747,000 Canadians have some type of cognitive impairment, including dementia, and this number is expected to double to 1.4 million by 2031 (as predicted by the Alzheimer Society of Canada). Furthermore, 20% of Canadian seniors are living with a mental illness (MacCourt, 2005), with anxiety and depression frequently co-existing among older adults, more often being associated with dementia. Pain tends to be under-reported and not treated, resulting in agitation and aggression, while mood disorders often go untreated because older adults may not recognize them or they may not report them due to associated social stigma.

Our WorkPackage is developing software applications for screening, assessment and interventions to enhance mental health and cognitive function, and tools that can automatically detect behaviours that lead to poor cognitive and mental health. Our research aims to give rise to new technologies in an area of application that has been ignored for the most part in the technology and aging field, and to provide tools that can be transferred to market through our various community and clinical partners who can make these tools widely available to the older adult population.