Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway

August 20, 2026 updated by: Duke University

Evaluation of a Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway Integrating Telemedicine and Clinical Pharmacist Practitioners

The purpose of this study is to evaluate an approach to managing patients with lupus nephritis called the Lupus Nephritis (LN) Pathway among approximately 25 patients. Activities include answering surveys and participating in an interview.

Objectives include: 1) Assess feasibility and acceptability of the LN Care Pathway, 2) evaluate user experiences to identify opportunities for improvement, and 3) explore the preliminary effect of this pathway on medication adherence and clinical outcomes.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

The Lupus Nephritis (LN) Pathway is an innovative, scalable, team-based model that leverages clinical pharmacist practitioners (CPPs) to deliver frequent telemedicine visits and implement protocol-based adherence support, medication management, and remote monitoring, all with oversight from rheumatology and nephrology physicians.

The investigators will include 25 patients with lupus nephritis. The study primarily assesses the LN Care Pathway's feasibility and acceptability using surveys, exit interviews, and metrics of enrollment, retention, and engagement. The investigators will also evaluate user experiences and identify areas for improvement in exit interviews. Lastly, the investigators will explore preliminary effects on medication adherence and key clinical outcomes

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

25

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 Contact Backup

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Active patient at a Duke University Health System clinic
  • Current diagnosis of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) based on the 1997 ACR,32 2012 Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC),33 or 2019 European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR)/ACR (American College of Rheumatology)34 classification criteria
  • Aged 18 years or older
  • Able to provide informed consent
  • Able to attend telemedicine visits
  • New onset or ongoing active LN based on rheumatologist or nephrologist evaluation

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with severe cognitive impairment
  • Do not wish to receive longitudinal care at our health system

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

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Lupus Nephritis (LN) Care Pathway
All participants receive the same LN Care Pathway intervention.
Behavioral: Lupus Nephritis (LN) Care Pathway
The LN Care Pathway is an innovative, scalable, team-based model that leverages clinical pharmacist practitioners (CPPs) to deliver frequent telemedicine visits and implement protocol-based adherence support, medication management, and remote monitoring, all with oversight from rheumatology and nephrology physicians.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Proportion of Eligible Patients Who Consent to and Enroll in the Study
Time Frame: From study start through completion of enrollment
The proportion of eligible patients who provide informed consent and enroll in the study. Feasibility of recruitment will be supported if at least 70% of eligible patients consent to and enroll.
From study start through completion of enrollment
Proportion of Enrolled Participants Who Complete the 6-Month Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway
Time Frame: 6 months
The proportion of enrolled participants who complete the 6-month Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway. Feasibility of retention will be supported if at least 80% of enrolled participants complete the Care Pathway.
6 months
Proportion of Enrolled Participants Who Complete at Least 50% of Planned Visits
Time Frame: 6 months
The proportion of enrolled participants who complete at least 50% of planned telehealth visits during the 6-month Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway. Feasibility of participant engagement will be supported if at least 75% meet this threshold.
6 months
Feasibility of the Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway as Measured by the Feasibility of Intervention Measure
Time Frame: 6 months
The Feasibility of Intervention Measure is a 4-item measure of perceived feasibility. Each item is rated on a 5-point scale from 1 to 5, with higher scores indicating greater feasibility. The mean score across items will be calculated.
6 months
Acceptability of the Lupus Nephritis Care Pathway as Measured by the Acceptability of Intervention Measure
Time Frame: 6 months
The Acceptability of Intervention Measure is a 4-item measure of perceived acceptability. Each item is rated on a 5-point scale from 1 to 5, with higher scores indicating greater acceptability. The mean score across items will be calculated.
6 months

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Duke University

Collaborators

Rheumatology Research Foundation

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Kai Sun, MD, MS, Duke University

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 (Estimated)

November 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

October 1, 2028

Study Completion (Estimated)

December 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

August 20, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 20, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

August 24, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 24, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 20, 2026

Last Verified

August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • Pro00120423

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

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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