Family caregivers of persons with dementia experience elevated risk for psychological distress, including symptoms of depression, anxiety, and perceived stress, often related to inadequate social supports and limited dementia-related health literacy. Few culturally inclusive and accessible interventions address caregiver psychosocial health needs. This gap is particularly evident within U.S. Black/African American communities, where younger, non-spousal caregivers comprise the majority of the dementia caregiving population. Virtual interventions may offer an accessible and scalable approach to caregiver support.

A single-group pilot study was conducted among U.S. caregivers of persons diagnosed with dementia who self-identified as Black/African American. Caregivers (N = 23) participated in a 6-week synchronous virtual support program delivered in small groups (2–4 participants). Weekly one-hour sessions addressed caregiver-prioritized topics identified through prior focus groups, including dementia progression and management, caregiver health promotion, stress management, and coping strategies. Standardized self-report measures assessed mental health, perceived support, coping, and caregiving self-efficacy at baseline and post-intervention. Effect sizes were estimated using Hedges’ g for paired samples, with Wilcoxon signed-rank tests conducted as sensitivity analyses.

Program retention was high, with 23 of 25 caregivers completing baseline and post-intervention assessments. Changes across outcomes were generally observed in the expected direction. Improvements were noted in perceived social resources (Hedges’ g = 0.28), PROMIS Global Mental Health (Hedges’ g = 0.34; p = 0.049), and indicators of caregiver self-efficacy. Reductions were observed in depressive symptoms (PROMIS Depression; negative sum rank = 168.5; Hedges’ g = −0.31), anxiety (PROMIS Anxiety; Hedges’ g = −0.12), and psychological stress (Hedges’ g = −0.17). Coping and adaptive processing demonstrated minimal change (Hedges’ g = 0.02). Effect sizes were small but consistent with early-stage community-based interventions.

Findings suggest that a brief, 6-week synchronous virtual support program is feasible and shows promise for improving global mental health, perceived support, and caregiving self-efficacy among Black/African American dementia caregivers. Although effects were modest, the consistency of change across outcomes supports further evaluation in a larger, controlled trial. Virtual caregiver support interventions may represent a scalable strategy for addressing inequities in caregiver mental health.