Reduce Loneliness in Care Partners of Persons With AD/ADRD
Increasing Meaning to Reduce Loneliness in Care Partners of Persons With AD/ADRD
Study Overview
Status
Status
Conditions
Conditions
Intervention / Treatment
Intervention / Treatment
Detailed Description
Study Type
Study Type
Enrollment (Actual)
Enrollment
Phase
Phase
- Not Applicable
Contacts and Locations
Study Contact
Study Contact
- Name: Michael Diefenbach, PhD
- Phone Number: 516-600-1440
- Email: mdiefenbach@northwell.edu
Study Contact Backup
- Name: Allison Marziliano, PhD
- Phone Number: 516-600-1440
- Email: amarzilian@northwell.edu
Study Locations
-
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New York
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Manhasset, New York, United States, 10022
- Northwell Health, Institute of Health System Science
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New Hyde Park, New York, United States, 11042
- Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine
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New York, New York, United States, 10075
- Geriatric Medicine, Lenox Hill Hospital
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Staten Island, New York, United States, 10309
- Staten Island University South Hospital
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Participation Criteria
Eligibility Criteria
Eligibility Criteria
Ages Eligible for Study
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Description
Inclusion Criteria:
• Self-identify as the care partner of a community-dwelling (i.e. does not live in a nursing home or facility) person with AD/ADRD (diagnosis confirmed via the patients' electronic health record when possible)
- report that their role as a care partner is not related to their employment (i.e. they are a family member or friend of the patient)
- age 18 or older
- English-speaking
- competency to participate
- access to a telephone, computer, Internet and email
- care partners must be lonely, defined as scoring ≥35 on the UCLA Loneliness Scale
Exclusion Criteria:
- Unable to communicate in English
- Under the age of 18
- only one care partner per patient will be allowed to participate
- could not have participated in previous Aims (1 or 2) of this study
Study Plan
How is the study designed?
Design Details
- Primary Purpose: Treatment
- Allocation: Randomized
- Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
- Masking: Double
Number of Arms
Arms and Interventions
Participant Group / ArmParticipant Group / Arm |
Intervention / TreatmentIntervention / Treatment |
|---|---|
|
No Intervention: Usual Care
Usual care for AD/ADRD care partners consists of a screen for burden, and potential referral to AD/ADRD social workers and the AD helpline.
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Experimental: Intervention Arm 1
MCP videos alone.
Care partners randomized to intervention arm 1 during Step 2 randomization will receive usual care + RELOAD-C, consisting of: 1) 6 brief (~5 minute) videos of Dr. Allison Applebaum introducing concepts from MCP for care partners of persons with AD/ADRD; and 2) written content associated with the videos, such as directions for homework assignments.
The tab with links to the virtual group meetings will be removed.
Participants in this arm use RELOAD-C on their own and do not have interaction with other care partners while using the platform.
One video will become available for viewing each week for the first 6 weeks after randomization, and each care partner will have a unique user ID/login.
|
RELOAD-C is a web-based platform that centralizes 6 brief videos of our MCP expert (Dr.
Applebaum) discussing sources of meaning, links to virtual group meetings facilitated by a social worker trained in MCP to promote discussion of MCP concepts, and written content providing guidance on homework and exercises referenced in the MCP videos
|
|
Experimental: Intervention Arm 2
MCP videos + MCP-focused virtual groups.
In addition to the components that the intervention arm 1 participants receive (6 MCP videos, written text), the RELOAD-C platform for the intervention arm 2 participants will include links to the virtual group meetings (7 in total).
The first 6 group meetings will occur weekly.
Each of the first 6 group meetings will facilitate discussion of the MCP concepts introduced in that week's video, as participants receive access to each video ~3 days prior to the group meeting.
The 7th virtual meeting will be used as a "booster" in week 9, and will focus on sharing how participants are using the MCP concepts in their daily lives.
All meetings will be facilitated by our social worker, Katherine Henthorne, LCSW.
|
RELOAD-C is a web-based platform that centralizes 6 brief videos of our MCP expert (Dr.
Applebaum) discussing sources of meaning, links to virtual group meetings facilitated by a social worker trained in MCP to promote discussion of MCP concepts, and written content providing guidance on homework and exercises referenced in the MCP videos
|
What is the study measuring?
Primary Outcome Measures
Primary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
|
Change in Care Partners' Loneliness between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be given at consent as a screening measure, at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
|
Our primary outcome is care partners' loneliness, defined as the distressing experience that occurs when a person's social relationships are perceived by that person to be less in quantity, and especially in quality, than desired.
Care partners' loneliness will be evaluated with the 20-item UCLA Loneliness Scale, a reliable and valid continuous measure for overall, emotional and social loneliness.
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This measure will be given at consent as a screening measure, at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Secondary Outcome Measures
Secondary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
|
Change in Depression between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
|
Secondary outcomes include care partners' depression (a common but serious mood disorder that causes symptoms that affect how you feel, think and handle daily activities), which will be evaluated by the CES-Depression, a brief and accurate measurement of the core symptoms/signs of depression.
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This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Change in Distress between baseline and 3 months post-baseline.
Time Frame: This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Distress, defined as an unpleasant emotion, feeling, thought, condition or behavior, will be evaluated with the Distress Thermometer, a screening tool to identify distress.
Individuals are asked to indicate their level of distress ranging from 0 (no distress) to 10 (extreme distress).
We will also assess to what extent distress is related to the role as a care partner.
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This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Change in Care partner burden between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
|
Care partner burden, defined as the strain or load borne by a person who cares for a chronically ill, disabled or elderly family member, will be evaluated with the Zarit Burden Scale, a measure, rated on a 5-point scale, of the reactions of family members to caring for older adult relatives.
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This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
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Change in Quality of Life between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Quality of life is the standard of health, comfort and happiness experienced by an individual.
This will be measured with the McGill Quality of Life measure.
|
This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
|
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Change in social isolation between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
|
Social isolation is the objective lack of contact with other people.
It will be measured with the 6-item Lubben social network scale.
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This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Change in social support between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Social support is defined as the comfort we receive from others on both physical and emotional levels.
This will be measured with the Duke UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire.
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This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Change in anxiety between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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State anxiety is a temporary emotional condition characterized by apprehension, tension, and fear about a particular situation or activity.
Trait anxiety is anxiety that shows up as part of your personality, not just in stressful situations.
State and trait anxiety will be measured with the STAI, the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, a commonly used measure.
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This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Change in mood states between baseline and 3 months post-baseline
Time Frame: This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
|
The brief, 20-item POMS (profile of mood states) will be used to measure anxiety, fatigue, depression, guilt, and vigor.
|
This measure will be administered at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post-baseline.
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Other Outcome Measures
Other Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
|---|---|---|
|
Feasibility of conducting a future RCT: percent consented
Time Frame: This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
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% consented will be calculated as care partners consented over eligible and approached.
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This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
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Feasibility of conducting a future RCT: percent drop-out
Time Frame: This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
|
% drop-out at baseline, 6 wks.
and 3 mos.
will be calculated as non-starters over consenters, or non-completers of the 6-week or 3-month assessment over consenters.
|
This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
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Feasibility of conducting a future RCT: Engagement in RELOAD-C
Time Frame: This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
|
This outcome will be determined by Google Analytics data in the domains of number of virtual groups attended (for intervention arm 2 only), videos viewed (both intervention arms), and homework/experiential exercises completed (both intervention arms).
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This will be documented throughout the study and calculated in the last month of the study.
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Exploratory outcome: Change in Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia between pre-randomization and 3 months post-randomization
Time Frame: This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
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Care partners' perception of patients' behavioral and psychological symptoms of dementia will be measured with the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI), a reliable and valid measure administered to care partners to evaluate patients' dementia-related behavioral symptoms across 12 domains.
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This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
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Demographic and Clinical History
Time Frame: This will be completed at pre-randomization/right after consent.
|
Demographic and clinical history will be assessed with our Sociodemographic Questionnaire that collects care partners' age, gender, race/ethnicity, level of income and education, clinical and psychiatric comorbidities.
We will also collect data from the care partner on the patients' diagnoses, level of cognitive impairment, relationship between care partner and patient, time since assuming the role of care partner, and number and role of other care partners for this patient.
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This will be completed at pre-randomization/right after consent.
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Change in Meaning in Life between baseline and 3 months post-baseline.
Time Frame: This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
|
Meaning in Life will be evaluated with the 10-item Meaning in Life Questionnaire.
Sample item: "My life has no clear purpose".
|
This measure will be administered to care partners at baseline, and 6 weeks and 3 months post baseline.
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Collaborators and Investigators
Sponsor
Sponsor
Collaborators
Collaborators
Study record dates
Study Major Dates
Study Start (Actual)
Study Start
Primary Completion (Actual)
Primary Completion
Study Completion (Actual)
Study Completion
Study Registration Dates
First Submitted
First Submitted
First Submitted That Met QC Criteria
First Submitted That Met QC Criteria
First Posted (Actual)
First Posted
Study Record Updates
Last Update Posted (Actual)
Last Update Posted
Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria
Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria
Last Verified
Last Verified
More Information
Terms related to this study
Additional Relevant MeSH Terms
Other Study ID Numbers
Other Study ID Numbers
- 21-1264
- 1K01AG076888-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)
Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?
IPD Plan Description
IPD Sharing Time Frame
IPD Sharing Access Criteria
IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type
- STUDY_PROTOCOL
- SAP
- ICF
- ANALYTIC_CODE
- CSR
Drug and device information, study documents
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product
Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product
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