Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy at Home

September 10, 2026 updated by: Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

A Pragmatic Randomized Control Trial of Nurse-Delivered Brief Meaning Centered Psychotherapy for Homebound Palliative Care Patients

The purpose of this study is to train nurses from the VNS Health Visiting Nurse Service to deliver Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy for Palliative Care Patients (MCP-PC) to homebound people, and to evaluate how effective MCP-PC is for people with cancer.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
81

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.
  • Name: Rebecca Saracino, PhD
  • Phone Number: 646-888-0263
  • Email: jamesr@mskcc.org

Study Contact Backup

  • Name: William Breitbart, PhD
  • Phone Number: 646-888-0020

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10065
        • Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (All Protocol Activities)
      • New York, New York, United States, 10021
        • Visiting Nurse Service of NY

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Both patients and homecare nurses will be recruited and enrolled as participants in the proposed study. All participants will be recruited from VNS Health Visiting Nurse Service

Description

Participant Inclusion Criteria:

Nurses (all phases):

  • Per self-report, providing direct care services at VNS Health
  • Per self-report, fluent in English**
  • Per self-report, is age 18 or older

Patients (all phases):

  • Per health record and/or self-report, is a patient in the VNS Health home health agency division (post-acute care)
  • Per health record and/or self-report, is age 18 or older
  • Per health record, has a cancer diagnosis and a rating of ≥ 2 on Symptom Control Scale
  • Per health record and/or self-report, fluent in English**
  • Has a score of ≥ 4 on Callahan cognitive screener

  • Has a score of ≥ 4 on Distress Thermometer (N/A for Training Case Participants)

    • Language verification: For both nurses and patients, prior to enrollment, all will be asked the following two questions by a Clinical Research Coordinator (CRC) to verify

English fluency necessary for participation in the study:

  1. How well do you speak English? (must respond "very well" or "well" when given the choices of Very well, Well, Not well, Not at all, Don't know, or Refused)
  2. What is your preferred language for healthcare? (must respond English)

Participant Exclusion Criteria:

Nurses (all phases):

  • Per self-report, planning to leave position at VNS Health in the next 6 months

Patients (all phases):

  • Per health record and/or self-report, has a diagnosis of Alzheimer's, dementia, or other organic brain disorder and in the judgment of the PIs is unable to meaningfully participate.
  • Per health record, has impaired decision-making capacity
  • Per health record and/or self-report, is permanently placed in a nursing home
  • Per health record and/or self-report, is currently receiving Hospice care

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Observational Models: Cohort
  • Time Perspectives: Prospective

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Phase 1: Nurse Participants
n=8-10 nurses
Behavioral: Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy/MCP-PC Training
Two-Day MCP-PC Training for Nurses (including mock patient/simulation with actor) with a Pre- and Post-Training Assessment
Phase 1: Patient Participants
n=8-10 patients
Behavioral: Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy/MCP-PC
3 sessions, completed over the course of 3-6 weeks in the participant's home
Phase 2: Nurse Participants
n=8-10 nurses
Behavioral: Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy/MCP-PC Training
Two-Day MCP-PC Training for Nurses (including mock patient/simulation with actor) with a Pre- and Post-Training Assessment
Phase 2: Patient Participants Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy/MCP-PC Intervention Arm
n=35
Behavioral: Meaning-Centered Psychotherapy/MCP-PC
3 sessions, completed over the course of 3-6 weeks in the participant's home
Phase 2: Patient Participants Treatment As Usual/TAU Intervention Arm
n=35
Behavioral: Treatment As Usual/TAU

Research team will provide:

  1. feedback about level of distress at time of screening
  2. local referral for psychological care

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
MPI Competency Ratings
Time Frame: 2 years
Phase I portion: To refine the MCP-PC training and study procedures for homecare delivery by nurse interventionists as determined by providers' MPI Competency Ratings
2 years

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Rebecca Saracina, PhD, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
August 8, 2022

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
August 8, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
August 8, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 8, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 8, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 10, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
September 15, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 10, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 22-019

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center supports the international committee of medical journal editors (ICMJE) and the ethical obligation of responsible sharing of data from clinical trials. The protocol summary, a statistical summary, and informed consent form will be made available on clinicaltrials.gov when required as a condition of Federal awards, other agreements supporting the research and/or as otherwise required. Requests for deidentified individual participant data can be made beginning 12 months after publication and for up to 36 months post publication. Deidentified individual participant data reported in the manuscript will be shared under the terms of a Data Use Agreement and may only be used for approved proposals. Requests may be made to: crdatashare@mskcc.org.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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