Timely Interventions to Enable and Reach Patients With Heart Failure, and Their Caregivers With Palliative Care (TIER-HF-PC)

July 14, 2026 updated by: National Cancer Centre, Singapore
There is evidence for the effectiveness and feasibility of the individual components of TIER-HF-PC, however there is a need to test how these individual components interact to allow the researchers to deliver TIER-HF-PC as a model of care in its totality. In the short term, this study will assess if TIER-HF-PC is beneficial for patients and caregivers.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
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.

Detailed Description

Timely Interventions to Enable and Reach patients with Heart Failure, and their caregivers with Palliative Care, or TIER-HF-PC, is a novel model of palliative care, designed to address gaps of palliative care delivery for patients with advanced heart failure, and their caregivers.

TIER-HF-PC is a service, led by a health coach, with support by a palliative care physician. This health coach will actively screen and monitor patients for problems, and then match the type and intensity of palliative care treatments to the severity of problems reported. The health coach will also facilitate processes for patients to initiate contact with health care providers should problems arise. This decreases the overall burden on palliative care services, enabling a scalable and more cost-effective model of care for a larger number of patients. The service will also utilize a proactive approach to care, increasing self-care skills and understanding of disease and treatment options. Earlier palliative care support will enable problems to be managed actively before they escalate into crises.

Overall aim: To test the effectiveness and implementation of the interacting components of TIER-HF-PC.

Specific aim 1a: To evaluate the impact of TIER-HF-PC on patients. The primary outcome is patient quality-of-life at 24 weeks, measured on the Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire. Secondary outcomes include patient anxiety, depression, coping, spirituality, healthcare utilization, survival, and cost-effectiveness of TIER-HF-PC.

Specific aim 1b: To evaluate the impact of TIER-HF-PC on caregivers. Outcomes evaluated include caregiver quality-of-life.

- Hypothesis 1: The researchers hypothesize that TIER-HF-PC will be superior to usual care, in improving patient and caregiver quality-of-life.

Specific aim 2: To evaluate the implementation outcomes of TIER-HF-PC.

- Hypothesis 2: The researchers hypothesize that participants will be satisfied with the TIER-HF-PC service, though modifications might be needed for fine-tuning of the appropriateness and timeliness of care provision in TIER-HF-PC. They will evaluate these implementation outcomes through a validated service evaluation survey and semi-structured interviews. Fidelity to study protocols will be assessed through audits of case notes and study processes.

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.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

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.
240

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

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.

Study Locations

  • Singapore
      • Singapore, Singapore, 169609
        • Recruiting
        • National Heart Centre Singapore
        • Contact:
      • Singapore, Singapore, 768828
      • Singapore, Singapore, 544886
      • Singapore, Singapore
        • Recruiting
        • National Cancer Centre, Singapore
        • Contact:

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Patients:

    1. 21 years or older and
    2. able to communicate in English/Chinese/Malay and
    3. be of stage C or D heart failure, as defined by American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) classification system and
    4. have functional limitation of New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional status of at least 2 or more and
    5. be deemed by their cardiologist's clinical judgement to have an expected prognosis of at least 6 months survival, and
    6. have had a heart failure related hospitalization event (e.g. symptomatic decompensated heart failure) within 6 months prior to recruitment and
    7. have a phone that allows telecommunication.

  • Caregivers must meet all the following inclusion criteria to be eligible for the study :

    • direct, unpaid, family caregiver of the patient;
    • self-reported by the patient to be the main person to be either:
    • responsible for up to 4 hours a day of caregiving tasks
    • and/or decision maker/spokesperson with the medical team
    • Caregiver may or may not live in the same residence as the patient.
    • Caregivers must be 21 years and above.
    • Able to communicate in English/Chinese/Malay.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients:

    1. have cognitive impairment (e.g., dementia)
    2. have severe, untreated, active mental illness (e.g., major depressive disorder)
    3. have ventricular assist device implant.
    4. have non-reversible hearing or visual loss or
    5. are active drug abuser or
    6. already known to a palliative care service.

  • Caregivers who meet any of the exclusion criteria at baseline will be ineligible for the study:

    • have cognitive impairment (e.g., dementia) or
    • have severe, untreated, active mental illness (e.g., major depressive disorder)
    • have non-reversible hearing or visual loss.
    • are active drug abuser or
    • are a domestic helper for the patient

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

  • Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
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.
Experimental: Regular screening with needs-guided palliative care treatments
The patient continues to receive clinical care from the cardiologist, as well as palliative care treatments that are based upon his/her reported distress and concerns.
Other: TIER-HF-PC
The patient will be assigned to one of the three levels of care which is determined by the results given by Distress Thermometer (DT) and the Integrated Palliative Care Outcome Scale (IPOS).
Other: Usual Care
Patient is referred by cardiologist to palliative care.
Other: Usual Care
Patient continues on clinical care by his/her cardiologist. If the cardiologist picks up their symptoms or other concerns, he/or can be referred to a specialist palliative care physician by the cardiologist.

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
Patient quality of life (QOL) per the KCCQ-12 Questionnaire
Time Frame: Every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier.
The Kansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire (KCCQ-12) will be used: It is a 12-item QOL scale, composed of physical function, symptoms, QOL, social interference and summary score will be used. The KCCQ-12 has similar validity to the 23-item version and is shorter with less respondent burden. The KCCQ-12 can be self-reported by patients or read to patients over the phone by a research coordinator. The total summary score can range from 0 to 100, with higher scores representing better health status. A clinically meaningful change is defined as a change of at least 5 points on the KCCQ. The KCCQ-12 will be measured for all participants (TIER-HF-PC and usual care), and tracked every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier. The frequency of our proposed KCCQ tracking is referenced from trials which used KCCQ to track longitudinal changes in QOL.
Every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier.
Patient quality of life (QOL) per the EUROQOL EQ-5D-5L Questionnaire
Time Frame: Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
The non cardiac specific health-related quality of life (EUROQOL EQ-5D-5L) questionnaire will also be used: This is a global assessment of the patient's quality-of-life in 5 dimensions: mobility, self-care, usual activities, pain/discomfort, and anxiety/depression, that can also be administered over the phone. The results from the 5 dimensions can be combined into a 5-digit number that describes the patient's health state utility. The EQ-5D-5L has been validated in the Singapore cardiac population.
Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
Caregiver Quality of Life (QOL)
Time Frame: Every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier.
The Singapore Caregiver Quality of Life Scale-15 (SCQOLS-15) will be used: This is a 15-item scale with 5 domains measuring QOL of life caregivers in domains: physical well-being, mental well-being, experience and meaning, impact on daily life, and financial well-being will be used. This will be measured for all caregiver participants (TIER-HF-PC and usual care), and tracked every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier. A difference of between 3-5 points in QOL scores could serve as a benchmark to evaluate if the difference between intervention and usual-care group is meaningful.
Every 8 weeks from baseline, till the point of patient death, or till week 48, whichever is earlier.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Survival analysis
Time Frame: Up to 48 weeks.
The differences in survival between TIER-HF-PC and usual care will be analyzed using a Cox model regression, censoring at week 48 or death, whichever occurs earlier.
Up to 48 weeks.
Acceptability of TIER-HF-PC from patient and caregiver participants - through completion of the client satisfaction questionnaire (CSQ-4)
Time Frame: At Week 25.
The client satisfaction questionnaire (CSQ-4) will be used. The total score of the CSQ per participant will be computed. Analysis will be conducted on the patient and caregiver scores separately. The percentage of participants in TIER-HF-PC who have at least a CSQ score of 12 and above will also be calculated.
At Week 25.
Acceptability of TIER-HF-PC from patient and caregiver participants - through semi-structured interviews
Time Frame: From Week 25 onwards, up to Week 48.
Regarding the analysis of semi-structured interviews, a qualitative coding team who is experienced in qualitative analysis will be formed. Interviews will be open coded line by line. Code categories will be developed and iteratively adjusted through discussions. The code categories will be subsequently mapped back to the main domains of the RE-AIM and PRISM framework to identify key multi-level contextual factors influencing the TIER-HF-PC outcomes as well as to assess the adoption, implementation, and impact of TIER-HF-PC. Hence, the analysis will involve both inductive and deductive approaches.
From Week 25 onwards, up to Week 48.
Patient anxiety and depression
Time Frame: Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) will be used. This is a 14-item scale with a score range of 0 to 42. It is composed of two subscales- anxiety and depression- with a cut-off point of 11 for each subscale, that determines anxiety and depression of clinical significance.
Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
Patient and Caregiver Spirituality
Time Frame: Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
The Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being 12 Item Scale (Facit-SP-12)/Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Non-Illness (FACIT-Sp Non-Illness) will be used. This is a 12-item survey that measures the spiritual well-being of patients and caregivers. The total of Facit-SP-12/ FACIT-Sp Non-Illness ranges from 0 to 48 with higher scores representing increased spirituality.
Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
Patient and Caregiver Coping
Time Frame: Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
Brief Coping with Problems Experienced (Brief-COPE) scale will be used. It is a 28-item scale measuring the ways people cope with stressful events. It has been used in the heart failure population, where the coping style was shown to correlate with the level of physical functioning.
Baseline, 8 weeks, 16 weeks, and 24 weeks.
Assessment of impact of TIER-HF-PC on healthcare utilization
Time Frame: Week 1 to Week 24.
The differences in community hospice usage, number and length of hospital admissions, number of emergency visits, number, and length of intensive care visits between TIER-HF-PC participants and those in usual care will be assessed using generalized linear models, with binomial model for community hospice usage and Poisson model with robust standard effort for other healthcare utilization outcomes.
Week 1 to Week 24.
Healthcare cost analysis
Time Frame: Up to 24 weeks.
The total cost of inpatient bills and outpatient bills including emergency visit bills for TIER-HF-PC participants and usual care participants from week 1 to week 24 will be summed up and the cost differences between both groups will be quantified by generalized linear model with Gamma model and robust standard error. The net cost of the TIER-HF-PC model will be calculated based upon the cost of care provision in TIER-HF-PC minus the cost savings from reduction of health care utilization. We will also calculate incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) to measure the average net cost per quality-adjusted-life-year (QALY) gained for TIER-HF-PC versus usual care participants. The QALY will be calculated by the product of quality-of-life (EQ-5d-5L) and survival.
Up to 24 weeks.

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.
National Cancer Centre, Singapore

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Khoo Teck Puat Hospital
Sengkang General Hospital
National Heart Centre Singapore

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: Dr Shirlyn Neo, MBBS, MRCP (UK), MMed, FAMS, National Cancer Centre, Singapore

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

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 14, 2024

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.
October 31, 2026

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.
October 31, 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).
January 17, 2024

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.
January 29, 2024

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.
February 6, 2024

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.
July 16, 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.
July 14, 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.
July 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.
  • TIER-HF-PC

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

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