Goal-Setting in Cognitive Rehabilitation for People with Early-Stage Alzheimer's Disease

This article draws upon findings from a recent randomized controlled trial of cognitive rehabilitation to consider the extent to which people with early-stage Alzheimer's Disease (n = 69) were able to identify individual rehabilitation goals, and what kinds of goals were important to them. For those assigned to receive cognitive rehabilitation (n = 22), we further examine the nature of the goals selected as the basis for therapy, and analyze within-group results with regard to efficacy. All participants were able to identify goals and to rate their performance and satisfaction with performance. Participants assigned to cognitive rehabilitation worked on selected goals, and clinically significant improvements in performance and satisfaction ratings for these goals were corroborated by therapist ratings and goal attainment indicators.