Behavioural and psychological symptoms of dementia include agitation, depression, apathy, repetitive questioning, psychosis, aggression, sleep problems, wandering, and a variety of inappropriate behaviors. One or more of these symptoms will affect nearly all people with dementia over the course of their illness. These symptoms are among the most complex, stressful, and costly aspects of care, and they lead to a myriad of poor patient health outcomes, healthcare problems, and income loss for family caregivers. The complexity of these symptoms means that there is no “one size fits all solution, and approaches tailored to the patient and the caregiver are needed”. Non-pharmacologic approaches should be used first line, although several exceptions are discussed.

The current pilot study examined the effects of the Person-Centered Environment Program (Memory Care®, developed by Belmont Village Senior Living) on agitation, cognition, stress, pain, sleep, and activities of daily living for Mexican senior living residents with dementia. Thirty individuals participated in the study. Memory Care® included sensitive, cognitive and affective stimulation, based on participants’ preferences and needs. memory care sessions were held daily (7 days per week, 8 hours) and a total of 6 weeks were performed at the first Belmont Village Community in Mexico City. Findings showed that agitation and pain improved with the Memory Care® Program (t = 2.91, P < 0.02; t = 4.51, P < 0.002, respectively). Findings suggested that a better study design, repeated with a bigger sample size, must be considered, but promissory results are shown.