Introduction
Joshua Arce is the co-founder and CEO of The Brain Cell, an organization dedicated to improving the quality of life for older adults through early cognitive screening and intervention. This article provides insights into Arce’s motivation for founding The Brain Cell, the company’s goals, research plans, and its impact on elder care. Additionally, it explores The Brain Cell’s testing technology, and includes a detailed analysis of an example of the testing experience, through which the author gained a deeper understanding of the Cognivue Clarity® technology.
Motivation and Goals
Joshua Arce’s motivation to contribute to improving cognitive health stems from personal experiences and a profound understanding of the importance of early intervention. He often quotes Teddy Roosevelt: “Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care,” which reflects his philosophy. Arce’s grandmother and great-grandmother passed away due to dementia, a devastating disease that took away two people who were very influential in his life. This tragedy fueled his passion for research in this area. Additionally, Arce has family experience with autism spectrum disorder. This background explains why The Brain Cell aims to destigmatize cognitive and related health evaluations. Arce’s involvement with the Alzheimer’s Association further reflects his commitment to combating cognitive decline. He helps organize the local Alzheimer’s Walk. Arce advocates for the destigmatization of cognitive assessments, emphasizing the necessity of early detection and treatment to improve the quality of life for the elderly. He believes that caring for older adults acknowledges the reality of our own future, and through helping them improve their lives, we also improve our own.
Goals and Functions of The Brain Cell
The Brain Cell aims to provide comprehensive cognitive screening, evaluation, and personalized care plans tailored to individual needs. The company focuses on early detection and intervention to prevent or delay severe cognitive decline, thereby enhancing the overall quality of life for older adults. Using advanced assessment tools like Cognivue, The Brain Cell seeks to destigmatize cognitive evaluations and promote their routine use, in the same way that we screen for other health conditions. The company’s services include developing personalized care plans that consider the individual’s cognitive assessment, background, and social environment, ensuring a holistic approach to cognitive health that can be implemented by a care team.
Research Plans and Impact on Elder Care
The Brain Cell intends to collaborate with care providers to develop and implement personal care plans based on cognitive screening results. These plans aim to address specific cognitive deficits and provide targeted interventions to improve cognitive function. If cognitive decline is left untreated or unmanaged, it can lead to more severe cognitive issues in future, conditions that could have been controlled or delayed through early intervention.
During his entrepreneurial journey, Arce has encountered numerous examples that emphasize the need for self-care and early intervention. One example is a Japanese-American couple who met and married in an internment camp in California during World War II. The husband neglected his health issues and predeceased his wife, who had advanced Alzheimer’s disease. This heart-breaking case highlights the importance of self-care and early intervention.
A contrasting example is from a book club that Arce belongs to, which is dedicated to women over 80. One retired woman living independently recognized her need for help and decided to hire a caregiver for tasks she should not be doing herself. This decision improved her quality of life and she acknowledged the benefits of ongoing professional support for her health. This example underscores the positive impact of continuous care in preventing or delaying declines in health.
The Brain Cell’s Testing Technology
The Brain Cell uses the Cognivue Clarity® assessment tool, a 10-minute computerized test that evaluates memory, executive function, identification, and visuospatial abilities. Based on adaptive psychophysics, the tool collects a wide range of data points to provide a personalized experience and ensure accurate assessments. The author tried The Brain Cell’s testing system. The test resembles short video games where the participant must quickly identify and select the relevant options from words, pictograms, and moving images on the screen. The test is calibrated to the individual user, engaging and easy to use.
The detailed results report provides comprehensive graphical data, making the analysis very easy to interpret for medical professionals. It includes the normal data range for each metric in addition to the user’s scores. For example, the fine motor skills and visual acuity metrics might both be within the normal range, indicating acceptable performance in these areas. Whereas, the letter and word identification scores might be slightly below standard, indicating potential vision or visual processing issues. (Visual processing is how the brain interprets the information we see.)
The Brain Cell recommends interventions where needed, such as consulting a developmental optometrist who will examine how the brain responds to information. They can also recommend exercises to enhance visual processing and cognitive function. The Cognivue test results are sent to the user, providing a baseline for their brain’s cognitive function.
If indicated, the user can share the Cognivue assessment report with their healthcare providers, who may make diagnoses and prescribe healthcare interventions. This cognitive baseline is intended to be the first step and can be compared with the results of ongoing, periodic cognitive screenings. Also, if any injury or disease occurs in the future, doctors can use the cognitive baseline to better assist with the patient’s recovery by understanding their starting point.
Learn More
By Ashlyn Xu, Pallas Care’s summer intern from USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology