A tailored iSupport virtual group intervention for Chinese dementia carers living in New Zealand

The Chinese version of the iSupport manual has been culturally adapted for Chinese dementia carers living in New Zealand, and it will be used in this study. This manual contains five themes spread across 23 sessions: (1) what is dementia? (one sesson), (2) being a carer (four sessons), (3) caring for me (three sessons), (4) providing everyday care (five sessons), and (5) dealing with challenging behaviours (10 sessons). For the iSupport virtual group intervention, only 11 sessions will be used. The development of the iSupport virtual group intervention was informed by the findings of a qualitative study interviewing Chinese dementia carers about their meaningful activities, digital ability, unmet needs, and usability of the Chinese version of the iSupport manual. These findings were used to tailor the iSupport virtual group intervention and to design the format of intervention delivery. The 11 lessons chosen by all the participants will be combined and prioritised by the research team. The 12 lessons of the iSupport virtual group intervention will be finalized from the findings of the interviews and 11 chosen lessons. This iSupport virtual group intervention will consist of a 1.5-hour session per week for 12 weeks. The intervention group will be divided into two groups with 5-7 people in each group. Two trained facilitators (an Age Concern Auckland staff and a volunteer) will be assigned to each group. Each session follows a similar format, consisting of a presentation about the main topic of the session, small exercises (e.g., mindful breathing), questions & answers, a summary of the lesson plus homework (e.g., preparing questions for the upcoming session), and evaluation. In addition, each session will involve a peer who was an experienced dementia carer or a health professional (such as a nursing practitioner or old age psychiatrist). After baseline assessment and randomisation, the participants in the intervention group will receive 12 sessions of the iSupport virtual group intervention. In addition, participants will receive all materials (The Chinese version of the iSupport manual and the iSupport virtual group intervention participant guide) for self-learning two weeks before starting the intervention. Zoom will be used to deliver the iSupport virtual group intervention. One day before the intervention, participants will receive a text reminder of the Zoom link and ID. Adherence to the intervention will be monitored using a spreadsheet before the start of each session.