Memory Lane Games - Reigniting memories for those with Dementia & Alzheimer's

During an evening at the local pub on the Isle of Mann, friends Peter Quayle and Bruce Elliott were discussing their mother’s health status and had an idea for an app.

"My mum's got dementia so what I was looking for was a simple to use app that I can use, and my mum can use, to allow me to reconnect with her - turning memories into games.", says Peter. Bruce, the other founder, added that they used their gaming experience to design easy games for their mothers, which they ended up loving.

The app Memory Lane Games contains more than 1,500 different quiz games, ranging from famous locations to missing song lyrics, which aim to trigger positive memories for patients with dementia. Since its launch in 2020, the app has been downloaded more than 50,000 times and is being used in 100 countries all over the world.

The 'game-changing' app presents simple, fun, quiz-style games that can serve as an icebreaker and create conversations between the patients and their caregivers. It is hoped the games will spark memories from years gone by, giving comfort to those with the condition. Those trialing the app are also encouraged to import their own personal pictures for a more personalized experience.

Peter, the co-founder of Memory Lane Games, recognized that short-term memory tends to go away faster and explained that they try to take advantage of long-term memories to generate engagement from people with dementia: "You could be looking at a game from Liverpool in the 1940s, or London in the 1950s and you see pictures of advertising or shops, and people say 'oh I remember that shop' and you have a five-minute conversation about that corner shop in Nottingham and that's fantastic."

Memory Lanes Games is available for free on the App Store and Google Play.

This story was adapted from: https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2022-01-21/the-game-changing-dementia-a...

The images were taken from https://apps.apple.com/us/app/memory-lane-games/id1517193093 and https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2022-01-21/the-game-changing-dementia-a... , as we do not own any of them.