Group Memory Management - The LaTCH Program

LaTCH is a group memory management program originally developed for older adults, including those with mild cognitive impairment. We have been working on making LaTCH for older adults more widely available (see below). We have also adapted LaTCH for people with brain tumours and are currently evaluating it in this group (see Brain Tumour Research for more information). It is called LaTCH as this represents the two institutes where the original founders were based – La Trobe University (Emeritus Professor Glynda Kinsella and Associate Professor Kerryn Pike) and Caulfield Hospital (Elizabeth Mullaly and Elizabeth Rand).

The Design of LaTCH:

LaTCH usually runs for 2-hour sessions every week for 6 weeks, with a booster session following. It was originally run as face-to-face sessions but has also been adapted for telehealth. It is a manualised program run by experienced facilitators who have completed the LaTCH training. It teaches participants about how memory works, things that can impact on memory, and practical strategies that can be applied in everyday situations. It focuses on common everyday memory difficulties including difficulties remembering names, misplacing belongings, finding words, keeping track in conversations, remembering numbers such as passwords, remembering appointments, and remembering things you need or want to do.

The Efficacy of LaTCH:

We have completed a randomised controlled trial which demonstrated that LaTCH works ( more details here).

It also has long-lasting effects, as reported in our study interviewing people who had completed LaTCH, 5 years later

( more details here).

The Availability of LaTCH for Older Adults:

In recent years, we have been working with different sites to make LaTCH available to people in the community. We are currently working with the Australian Dementia Network (ADNeT) to run a pilot implementation study of LaTCH as well as other cognitive interventions, with several memory clinics around
Australia.

LaTCH is currently available through the following services (note, you generally need to be attending
that service to access LaTCH):