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If you or a loved one have been diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment or dementia, there’s a new mobile app in development that could help.

Research has found that routine and structure help patients with dementia. One way to stay organized is through your smartphone.

Once downloaded on an iPhone, the app, called Mantrah, can help manage your condition and improve quality of life.

The app is currently in “trial mode,” according to Ram Balasubramanian, founder and Chief Analytics Officer at Mantrah.

“We have a version of our app that we want actual users to ‘take for a spin’ and give us feedback on the utility and usefulness of a solution like ours for their caregiving needs,” Balasubramanian said. “Before we build the Ferrari, we wanted to build a small ‘baby’ version.”

What the app does

The app is for people with dementia and their caregivers. People in early stages of dementia that are comfortable using a smartphone will be able to collaborate with their caregiver through the app. It helps keep track of medications, exercise schedules and key appointments.

When a patient takes a pill, for instance, he or she can check a box on the app. Immediately, the caregiver will receive a notification on his or her phone. In addition, caregivers will receive an alert if the patient wanders out of a predetermined “safe zone.”

Users can also record their mood, make key observations of the day in a journal, and receive encouragement to stick with their care plan.

There are six “pillars” of a care plan that Mantrah helps to organize: medication, exercise, appointments, cognitive activities, social engagement and mindfulness.

Will integrate data from devices

Mantrah’s team is currently working on integrating data from wearable devices such as a FitBit, Apple Watch or smart-home sensors, too. That way, it can tell users how well they’re adhering to their own goals. That’s important because one of the clinically proven ways to slow the progression of dementia is staying physically active.

In addition, the app will use the data to suggest certain exercises for patients who seem at risk.

“Falls, for example, are one of the big concerns for people with dementia — and one of the reasons they end up in the hospital,” Balasubramanian said.

“There’s a lot of technology that can detect a fall when it happens, [but] by then it’s too late. We want to get ahead of it.

“Wouldn’t it be great if we can predict who might be developing a risk for falls, and get them to improve their balance and posture through specific exercises, thereby preventing that fall?”

Mantrah’s goal is to help to “enable independent living longer,” Balasubramanian said.

This fall, Mantrah released the current trial version of the app to several people.

“So far, we’ve had a few users that love it,” he said. “That gives us a lot of encouragement that we’re on the right track, but we’d like to get more people to try it so we can incorporate their feedback [into future versions of the app].”

While some caregiving apps such as eCare21 charge $7.95 per month, Mantrah is free, at least for now.

Mantrah plans to launch a commercial app in the first quarter of next year.

For more information or to download the app on your iPhone for free, visit Mantrah.us.