Randomized Trial of an HIV Navigation Program for Early Palliative Care

NCT ID: NCT01884389

Last Updated: 2018-01-29

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: PHASE2
• Total Enrollment: 179 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2013-06-30
• Study Completion Date: 2017-07-31

Brief Summary

This study is testing a navigation program for early palliative care provided in tandem with HIV primary care for persons living with HIV (PLWH) who are at high risk or mortality and morbidity related to their co-morbid chronic conditions. Participants are enrolled for a period of 36 months, with data collection at enrollment and every 9 months after, for a total of 5 data collection time points. Study participants enrolled will be randomized into one of two groups: control or intervention. Control group participants will receive control calls in between survey data collection time points. Intervention group participants will participate in a Navigation Program which includes home visits and phone calls with an advanced practice nurse (APN) and licensed social worker (LSW), as well as visits / calls by a volunteer if desired. The frequency of visits / calls will be determined based on level of need (high, medium or low).

The specific aims of the study are to: 1) identify needs and preferences for palliative care and advance care planning for PLWH, in order to tailor an existing Navigation Program for this study; 2) test the effectiveness of an HIV Navigation Program intervention on outcomes of quality of life, symptom burden, coping ability, and advance care planning; and 3) determine if effectiveness of the HIV Navigation Program intervention differs by age, gender, ethnicity, education, income level, and level of palliative care service need.

Detailed Description

With the advent of effective antiretroviral treatment for HIV has come a marked increase in the number of persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA), with the highest prevalence since the epidemic began of more than 1.2 million. While PLWHA survive longer, they also experience increased burdens of chronic conditions related to lifestyle factors, treatment side effects, and age. PLWHA are a population at great risk for high symptom burden, impaired coping and social functioning, decreased quality of life, and inadequate end-of-life care. The remarkable shift in attitudes towards HIV, from an inevitably fatal disease to a chronic condition, has been accompanied by a lessening emphasis on symptom management and end-of-life planning. However, while mortality from AIDS-defining conditions has decreased, PLWHA continue to have unaddressed needs for coordinated care, symptom management and proactive advance care planning. Palliative care, focused on comprehensive management of physical, psychological, social, and spiritual needs of persons with incurable, progressive illnesses, is a health service uniquely designed to meet these needs. This research project will test a model of early palliative care for PLWHA at high risk of mortality and morbidity. First, focus group methods will be used to explore views of PLWHA regarding their needs for symptom management and social support, and attitudes towards advance care planning and end-of-life concerns. We will then conduct a randomized trial of a novel HIV Navigation Program, which will be a modification of an existing navigation program that uses trained and experienced volunteers as a core component, offered by a large, comprehensive hospice and palliative care organization. The specific aims of this study are 1) to identify needs and preferences for palliative care and advance care planning of PLWHA, in order to tailor an existing Patient Navigation Program to the specific needs of PLWHA with chronic conditions; and 2) to test the effect of an HIV Patient Navigation Program intervention on outcomes of quality of life, symptom burden, coping ability, and advance care planning; and 3) to determine if effectiveness of the HIV Navigation Program intervention differs by age, gender, ethnicity, education, income level, and level of palliative care service need. Because of the increasing prevalence of HIV coexisting with chronic conditions, there is an urgent need to assess palliative care needs and preferences of PLWHA and design effective interventions. This interdisciplinary study will test, at the community level, a novel health service designed to meet the unique needs of chronically ill PLWHA, and improve and support advance care planning. Results from this study will increase understanding of who are PLWHA at highest risk for need of palliative services and provide a model for providing early palliative care support for PLWHA.

Conditions

HIV; Chronic Disease

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: SUPPORTIVE_CARE
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Patient Navigation

Patients are "admitted" to the navigation program, provided through a local community partner agency. Each of these subjects will be assigned an advanced practice nurse (APN) and licensed social worker (LSW) as co-case managers, with their relative contributions depending on the nature of the subject's needs. Level of need (1, 2 or 3) will be confirmed for each patient, and the level will inform the amount of in-person and phone call contacts made to provide on-going support and monitoring of patients. Additionally, this group will meet with the research team for data collection at enrollment and at four 9-month intervals for a total of 5 time points.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Patient Navigation

Intervention Type: OTHER

Home-based medical and social support services, as an extension of and collaboration with primary care services provided. Phone calls and visits scheduled based on patient's level of need. Communication with primary care team via navigation plan faxed / emailed as needed. Volunteers will also be matched with intervention patients to provide additional support services by phone / in-person visits.

Usual Care

The control group will receive "usual care" - medical care and support provided by their primary care provider. They will not receive any of the navigation program services. To provide control for the effects of attention, we will contact these subjects at baseline and every other month thereafter by phone. During these contacts, we will ask a scripted "social" query (e.g. "How are things going for you?"). A subject who raises any health issues or need for specific information will be referred to the primary care provider. Additionally, this group will meet with the research team for data collection at enrollment and at four 9-month intervals for a total of 5 time points.

Group Type: NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Patient Navigation

Home-based medical and social support services, as an extension of and collaboration with primary care services provided. Phone calls and visits scheduled based on patient's level of need. Communication with primary care team via navigation plan faxed / emailed as needed. Volunteers will also be matched with intervention patients to provide additional support services by phone / in-person visits.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• HIV dx for 2+ years
• English speaking
• lives within 50 miles of study headquarters
• at least one physical co-morbid condition
• receiving primary care at Institutional Review Board (IRB) approved clinic recruitment site

Exclusion Criteria

• currently enrolled in hospice care

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)

NIH

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Case Western Reserve University

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Jacquelyn Slomka

Assistant Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Jacquelyn Slomka, PhD RN

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Case Western Reserve University

Locations

Case Western Reserve University

Cleveland, Ohio, United States

Countries

United States

References

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV/AIDS Surveillance Report. US Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2007, 2009.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Merlin JS, Cen L, Praestgaard A, Turner M, Obando A, Alpert C, Woolston S, Casarett D, Kostman J, Gross R, Frank I. Pain and physical and psychological symptoms in ambulatory HIV patients in the current treatment era. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2012 Mar;43(3):638-45. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2011.04.019. Epub 2011 Nov 23.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 22115794 (View on PubMed)

Fausto JA Jr, Selwyn PA. Palliative care in the management of advanced HIV/AIDS. Prim Care. 2011 Jun;38(2):311-26, ix. doi: 10.1016/j.pop.2011.03.010.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 21628041 (View on PubMed)

Karus D, Raveis VH, Alexander C, Hanna B, Selwyn P, Marconi K, Higginson I. Patient reports of symptoms and their treatment at three palliative care projects servicing individuals with HIV/AIDS. J Pain Symptom Manage. 2005 Nov;30(5):408-17. doi: 10.1016/j.jpainsymman.2005.04.011.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 16310615 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

R01NR014059

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

View Link

RES121956

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id