Can Cognitive Assessment Games Save Us From Cognitive Decline?

Loss of cognitive potential is one of the greatest impediments to human wellbeing and productivity. Our healthcare system does a poor job of managing cognitive development and cognitive decline because it measures cognitive status relatively infrequently and in the limited times when cognitive measures are taken, the instruments used tend to be blunt. In the panel that we presented at HCS 2021 we examined the potential for cognitive assessment games to provide more frequent cognitive assessment. We reported on the use of a cognitive assessment game to screen for delirium risk in emergency patients, and the development of a suite of assessment games that can assess executive functions and other cognitive abilities in both young and old. We conclude with a discussion of knowledge translation and implementation science strategies for incorporating game-based cognitive assessment into healthcare practice.