Pilot Evaluation of Technology-enhanced Horticultural Activities Among the People With Dementia and Their Family Caregivers

October 10, 2022 updated by: Patrick KOR Pui Kin, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Horticultural therapy is one of the effective interventions for the person with dementia(PWD) which could increase their time engaging in leisure activities and decrease their time doing nothing. However, there are some limitations and constraints for PWD to participate in the horticultural therapy especially in the high-density cities (e.g. Hong Kong). This study aims to investigate the feasibility and preliminary effects of adopting home-based technology-enhanced horticultural activities. The program will consist of three face-to-face (F-T-F) horticultural activity training session for a group of 6-8 participants and then biweekly telephone follow-up for 8-week home-based horticultural intervention. Program evaluation will be conducted through focus groups with 15 participants with different levels of stress reduction after the intervention. It is hypothesized that the PWD and their caregiver will have a significant improvement in the cognitive function and behavioral symptoms of the PWD, an increase in the positive caregiving experience in the family caregivers, a reduction of the caregivers' level of stress and depressive symptoms, and enhancement of the quality of life of the family caregivers after the intervention.

Study Overview

Status

Recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Objective This study aims to investigate the feasibility and preliminary effects of adopting home-based technology-enhanced horticultural activities to: a) improve the cognitive function and behavioral symptoms of the PWD; b) promote the positive caregiving experience in the family caregivers; c) reduce the caregivers' level of stress and depressive symptoms; and d) improve the quality of life of the family caregivers. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first program adopting Smart Grower for horticultural intervention among the PWD and their family caregivers in Hong Kong.

Method The home-based technology-enhanced horticultural activities will be delivered for the people with dementia and their family caregivers through a smart grower. The smart grower is a hydroponic indoor grower that builds a controllable environment with auto optimization for growing healthy plants, fresh vegetables, herbs, and fruits. A mobile app will be connected to the grower for controlling the growing environment (e.g. lighting, watering), tracking the progress of the plants, guiding the older people with dementia and their family caregiver to conduct the horticulture activities. The program will consist of three face-to-face (F-T-F) horticultural activity training session for a group of 6-8 participants and then biweekly telephone follow-up for 8-week home-based horticultural intervention. The home-based program contains different horticultural, cognitive and multisensory stimulation activities such asking the PWD and the family caregiver to record the sense of touch and odor when taking care of the plant and the various changes of the plants by using the smart grower. Program evaluation will be conducted through focus groups with 15 participants with different levels of stress reduction after the intervention. The aims of the focus groups is to identify the strengths, limitations, and difficulties of the home-based technology-enhanced horticultural program.

Significance and Value In this project, we would like to collaborate with the elderly center to deliver the technology-enhanced horticultural activities for PWD in the community and make this program sustainable in the community. Meanwhile, we will collect the users' feedback and further modify the program to fit the needs of the people with dementia and the family caregivers.

In the future, we hope that the program will not only benefit the community-dwelling older people but also those receiving service in the respite center, day care center, hospice and nursing home as they are also facing the challenges of manpower shortage, issues of loneness and poor psychological health. We will base on the data and results collected from this proposed study and further revise the program and software for servicing the older people in nursing through a group-based approach.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

60

Phase

  • 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 Locations

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

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. The PWD

    1. Aged 65 or above who had been diagnosed with any type of dementia at the early to moderate stage
    2. Are Community-dwelling (i.e., non-institutionalized),
    3. Are Able to understand Cantonese and follow simple instruction

  2. The family caregivers

    1. Aged 18 years or above;
    2. the blood or by-marriage relatives (e.g. spouses, siblings, children, and grandchildren) of a person who has been clinically diagnosed with dementia, regardless of its types and these relatives are taking up the caring responsibilities ranging from physical aids to emotional supports, in the form of transportation, financial assistance, personal hygiene, and decision-making.;
    3. Providing most of the daily care and support for PWD (daily contact for at least four hours); and
    4. Able to speak Cantonese

Exclusion Criteria:

The PWD and the family caregivers

  1. Are diagnosed with a mental disorder such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, dementia, or depression; and/or,
  2. Are taking anticonvulsants, or any kind of psychotropic drugs, and/or identified with a self-reported suicidal thought or drug abuse in the past 6 months.

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: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intervention Arm
The program will consist of three face-to-face (F-T-F) horticultural activity training session for a group of 6-8 participants and then biweekly telephone follow-up for 8-week home-based horticultural intervention.
Device: The Aspara @ smart grower
The program will consist of three face-to-face (F-T-F) horticultural activity training session for a group of 6-8 participants and then biweekly telephone follow-up for 8-week home-based horticultural intervention. The home-based program contains different horticultural, cognitive and multisensory stimulation activities such asking the PWD and the family caregiver to record the sense of touch and odor when taking care of the plant and the various changes of the plants by using the smart grower. Program evaluation will be conducted through focus groups with 15 participants with different levels of stress reduction after the intervention.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
The Chinese version of Positive Aspect of Caregiving scale (PAC)
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The PAC scale demonstrates the acceptable levels of internal consistency Cronbach's alpha 0.85 among the family caregivers of PWD in Hong Kong. Higher scores indicating more positive self-perceptions of caregiving. Comparisons of changes of Positive Aspect of Caregiving scale (PAC)will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The Chinese version of Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
Perceived Stress Scale contains 10 items with 5-point Likert-type scale rating from 0 (never) to 4 (very often). The total score can range from 0 to 40 with higher scores indicating higher perceived stress. Comparisons of changes of Perceived Stress Scale will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The WHOQOL-OLD BREF (HK)
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The WHOQOL-OLD BREF (HK) comprised 28 items and each item is rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale that ranged from 1 (very dissatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied), with a higher score indicating a better QoL. Comparisons of changes of The WHOQOL-OLD BREF (HK) will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The Chinese version of Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale(CESDS)
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The Chinese version of Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale is a self-reported measure of depression containing 20 items. Comparisons of changes of Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression scale will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
MoCA-5-min
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
MoCA-5-min assess participants' cognitive function over the telephone. MoCA-5-min comprises four domains: attention, executive function/language, orientation, and memory.Comparisons of changes of MoCA-5-min will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The Chinese version of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire (NPI-Q)
Time Frame: At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1
The Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire evaluates the frequency, severity, and caregiver distress of 12 neuropsychiatric symptoms by using a 5-point rating scale..Comparisons of changes of the Neuropsychiatric Inventory-Questionnaire will be considered as follows: T0 - T1
At baseline (T0) and 11th week (immediately post- intervention; T1

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Patrick Kor, PhD, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

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)

September 1, 2022

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

December 30, 2023

Study Completion (Anticipated)

August 30, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

October 10, 2022

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 10, 2022

First Posted (Actual)

October 13, 2022

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

October 13, 2022

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

October 10, 2022

Last Verified

October 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • HSEARS20220801002

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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