Dementia Care Management in an Underserved Community: The Comparative Effectiveness of Two Different Approaches.

Objectives: To compare the effectiveness and costs of telephone-only approach to in-person plus telephone for delivering an evidence-based, coordinated care management program for dementia.

Methods: We randomized 151 patient-caregiver dyads from an underserved predominantly Latino community to two arms that shared a care management protocol but implemented in different formats: in-person visits at home and/or in the community plus telephone and mail, versus telephone and mail only. We compared between-arm caregiver burden and care-recipient problem behaviors (primary outcomes) and patient-caregiver dyad retention, care quality, health care utilization, and costs (secondary outcomes) at 6- and 12-months follow-up.