LUMEN Clinical Feasibility and Qualitative Assessment
Research type
Research Study
Full title
LUMEN (Large Language Model for Understanding and Monitoring Elderly Neurocognition): A Clinical Feasibility Study with Nested Qualitative Evaluation for AI- Assisted Dementia Assessment
IRAS ID
350125
Contact name
Judith Harrison
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Northumbria NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 29 days
Research summary
Dementia is one of the leading causes of death in the UK, and the rising prevalence of this condition is placing increasing pressure on health services. Currently, the process of diagnosing dementia involves lengthy clinical assessments. Typically, the initial information-gathering appointment, led by a nurse, takes around 2 hours. This is emotionally taxing for patients and their carers. The cost of dementia assessments to the health service will increase as the population ages, especially if new dementia treatments become available.
LUMEN is a conversational AI tool designed to gather vital collateral history from carers before patients attend dementia clinics. By collecting this information in advance, LUMEN aims to streamline the diagnostic process, allowing clinicians to focus their in-person appointments on key diagnostic tasks. This could potentially reduce the time spent in assessments, improve diagnostic accuracy, and enhance the overall experience for patients and their carers. Moreover, LUMEN can help reduce the emotional burden often faced by carers, who are typically asked to describe their loved ones' cognitive decline during the assessment.
This clinical feasibility study will assess the usability and acceptability of LUMEN when deployed in real-world memory clinic settings. We will recruit 20-30 patient-carer pairs, asking carers to interact with LUMEN after a routine memory clinic appointment. We will evaluate the tool’s usability through quantitative measures, such as the time required to complete tasks and usability scores, and qualitative interviews will provide insight into carers' perceptions of the tool. Co-production workshops involving diverse public, patient and carer groups will also be conducted to ensure LUMEN is accessible to all, including those who may be less familiar with digital technologies. Ultimately, this study will provide the foundation for future large-scale trials of AI tools in dementia diagnosis.
REC name
Wales REC 6
REC reference
25/WA/0071
Date of REC Opinion
11 Mar 2025
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion