Use of Online Communications to Support Patients and Their Families in the Hospice Unit

The increasing awareness of the importance of palliative care has led, in Israel, to the 2005 Law for the Rights of Persons with Terminal Illness. Still, problems of accessibility to palliative care remain unresolved. The use of e-health services is likely to expand the ability of the medical, psychosocial and nursing staff to reach patients who are either living in the periphery, are unable to make clinic visits or whose family members are housebound in order to be caregivers. This exploratory research is designed to explore the issues, barriers and advantages of e-health care through the perspective of the palliative care staff members, the patients themselves and their caregiving family members.

Study Overview

• Status: Unknown
• Conditions: Palliative Care
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: psychosocial intervention

Detailed Description

This study is designed to test the applicability and suitability of e-health services (e.g. by use of SKYPE) to the psychosocial needs of patients and their families who are getting services through home hospice care. In addition, the attitudes of the hospice staff will be investigated to the use of e-health methods. The study will clarify selection criteria, referral pathways and barriers and/or supporting elements that will allow e-health services to be provided in a highly professional fashion. Up to 20 dyads of a patient and their primary caregiver will be recruited from those who are receiving services from the home hospice unit of the Kupat Holim Clalit (General Sick Fund) in the South of Israel.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 20
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patient currently receiving care from the home hospice unit,
• over the age of 18,
• able to give informed consent,
• with a computer that can use SKYPE or a smartphone,
• speaking a language of the psychosocial staff person (Hebrew, English, Russian, Arabic).

Exclusion Criteria:

• Brain tumors,
• dementia,
• speech disturbance,
• refusal to participate,
• language other than the four spoken by psychosocial staff members,
• inability to use technology or lack of computer in the home.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
• Allocation: Non-Randomized
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention group: All dyads are in the intervention arm.	Other: psychosocial intervention; e-health services (e.g. by use of SKYPE) to the psychosocial needs of patients and their families who are getting services through home hospice care. In addition, the attitudes of the hospice staff will be investigated to the use of e-health methods.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
SWAT - The social work assessment tool	Tool to assess the quality of social work psychosocial services	One year

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
EIS (Emotional Intimacy Scale)	assess the emotional intimacy component a close relationship	6 month
SLDS (Satisfaction with cancer scale)	assess cancer patient quality of life	6 month
the will to live question	assess the will to live in a specific time point	6 month
ZBI (Zarit burden scale),	assess primary care burden	6 month
attitudes toward use of e-therapy questionnaire.	estimate attitudes of professional care giver	6 month

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Pesach Shvartzman

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: June 1, 2015
• Primary Completion (Anticipated): May 1, 2016
• Study Completion (Anticipated): May 1, 2017

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: June 10, 2015
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 25, 2015
• First Posted (Estimate): June 26, 2015

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): June 26, 2015
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: June 25, 2015
• Last Verified: June 1, 2015

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: palliative care; e-health; e-therapy; psychosocial services
• Other Study ID Numbers: ק007/2015