SOSteniamoci: Stakeholders' Survey

Informal Caregivers and Clinicians' Knowledge, Awareness, Attitude and Expect Barriers Towards Internet-based Interventions: A Stakeholders' Survey in Italy

Informal care is defined as the unpaid care provided to an older, frail, or ill person, by a person such as a spouse, a parent, a child, another relative, a neighbor, or a friend. This phenomenon may lead to stress, burden, and decreased informal caregivers' quality of life. Since lack of time, distance from services, and financial strains make the provision of psychological interventions to informal caregivers often challenging, Internet-based (self-help) programs might represent a viable solution to promote their emotional well-being. Still, despite the proven benefits of internet-based intervention, no available programs for informal caregivers are available for the Italian population. Nevertheless, planning and developing an online intervention, involving possible stakeholders (caregivers), might facilitate the understanding and dissemination of, willingness to use, and success of the future intervention. Thus, the goal of the current study is to assess Italian stakeholders' knowledge about, awareness of, attitudes towards, willingness to participate and use, and expected barriers to internet-based interventions.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Informal Caregivers

Detailed Description

The present study assessed the knowledge and awareness, attitudes, willingness to participate in, and expected barriers towards using Internet-based interventions to alleviate caregivers' burden in a sample of Italian caregivers and clinicians. To this aim, an online stakeholders' survey was conducted in Italy among clinicians and informal caregivers, using a snowballing sampling technique. Participants were asked to fill in the informed consent and complete the online survey as a clinician, a caregiver, or both. Data were monitored daily. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis were used for data analysis.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 150

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Italy
  • Milan, Italy, 20145
    • Giada Pietrabissa

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Probability Sample

Study Population

Formal and informal caregivers

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• clinicians and informal caregivers
• aged 18 years or older
• internet access
• basic computer literacy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Mean score in Online survey for clinicians	Online survey for clinicians - 30 items	At baseline, during online survey, performed after signing informed consent
Mean score in Online survey for informal caregivers	Online survey for informal caregivers - 45 items	At baseline, during online survey, performed after signing informed consent

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Istituto Auxologico Italiano
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Giada Pietrabissa, PhD, Istituto Auxologico Italiano

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 15, 2022
• Primary Completion (Actual): December 15, 2022
• Study Completion (Actual): December 15, 2022

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: March 13, 2023
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 30, 2023
• First Posted (Actual): April 4, 2023

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): April 4, 2023
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: March 30, 2023
• Last Verified: March 1, 2023

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: 03C212

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No