Product Proposal
Introduction and Statement of Purpose:
For my final product, I will be testing out my original work, and I will be creating a few pamphlets answering common questions patients have about Alzheimer’s Disease. For the first part of my final product, I plan to administer my test and the MOCA test to people of varying ages, time and score it to see how my test performs in comparison to the MOCA test. For the second part, I have to compile a list of questions that patients have such as will taking supplements work against AD or are certain foods able to act as a prevention method? With that list, I will be searching into various literature to figure out the answers to their questions.
The purpose of my product is to determine the accuracy and efficiency of my test and to answer patient questions that doctors do not always have the immediate answer to. The second part of my product was actually an idea that my mentor gave me. He told me that patients would ask him so many specific questions about certain vitamins or activities and their effects on Alzheimer's disease. Since he is constantly working, he does not get a lot of time to find literature to back up certain claims or answer some of the patients' questions, so he suggested for me to find out those answers.
Review of Skills and Research:
The main points that I will be researching are how vitamins and certain foods play a factor in an Alzheimer's patient, how taking them can be of benefit and how useful they are in prevention. In this process, I will understand how to weed out misinformation from useful information. With my mentor’s help, I can find what sources can be the best and accurate information from the internet. Since research through scientific literature is a prevalent tool to use in understanding and answering questions, this skill that I will gain will aid me in years to come. I also need to learn how to administer a MOCA test, so I can have an accurate reading. This is important because I will be comparing the MOCA test results to my test results, so I can see if my test has any accuracy.
I have already begun my research by finding an article on PubMed that discusses how when vitamins are low in an Alzheimer’s patient, it promotes oxidative stress, which will cause the disease to speed up. I also have seen the MOCA test and have looked over it. My mentor has told me that he will show me how he administers it to his patients during one mentor visit. This will help me see how to approach giving a test.
​
Methodology:
I will begin my project by first reaching out to an assisted living home and ask if I could come and administer my test and the MOCA test to some of the residents. Then I will give the tests to people whose ages range from 50 to 20. With all this information, I will create a chart that compares the two tests, and write a page about the results of this experiment. The second part of my project requires me to first compile a list of questions that my mentor has gotten from patients who need answers. Then I will go and find resources that answer these questions. The research will take the majority portion of this part of the project because there is very limited research done on topics like vitamins and supplements on Alzheimer’s disease. Once I get all my information, I will compile all of the knowledge into pamphlets or flyers that will be digestible for patients.
Materials:
The materials list is short for these projects. For the first part, I just need people to take my diagnostic test and the MOCA test. For the second part, I need to find literature that pertains to my topic and have a website like Canva to create my pamphlets.
Conclusions:
My final product will be comparing my screening test from my original work to the most popular screening test, MOCA. Having a comparison will see how my test performs in the real world and is some sort of measurement of validation to my test. Though there might have to be much more trials to have my test be considered to be used professionally, this will give it some leverage. I will also be creating pamphlets that answer the questions of patients who have or are curious about Alzheimer's disease. The outcome of this project will be that I will have a product that is of use to my mentor, so he can use it when dealing with his patient’s concerns about vitamins or supplements. I will learn how to distinguish where I can attain accurate and beneficial information, which will be a skill that will aid me in college and in life. The research I get from this search will lead me to develop useful information to patients with genuine concerns.
Timeline:
1st Week:
Compile a list of questions from patients.
Contact Prestonwood.
Find documents on PubMed for research.
2nd Week:
More research on patient questions.
Understand how to administer MOCA, an set up how the sessions will be.
Finalize a date to give the test to seniors.
Mentor visit.
3rd Week:
Administer my test and MOCA to a few seniors.
More research on patient questions.
Mentor visit.
4th Week:
Administer MOCA and my test to 10-50-year-olds.
More research on patient questions.
Mentor visit.
5th Week:
Develop a chart will all the information comparing my test performance and the MOCA
More research on patient questions.
Mentor Visit.
6th -9th Week:
Research on patient questions.
Mentor visit.
10th-13th Week:
Make a pamphlet type of my product to document all the information for the patient questions.
Mentor visit.
14th Week:
Finalize presentation, and compile all the information I have attained from this year into a powerpoint.
Final Presentation night May 17th: