Optimizing Dementia Care

Study Results

Results available

Outcome measurements, participant flow, baseline characteristics, and adverse events have been published for this study.

View full results

Basic Information

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

86 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2016-10-01

Study Completion Date

2020-10-22

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

The purpose of this randomized controlled pilot study is to examine the preliminary effectiveness, feasibility, and potential treatment moderators (i.e., behavioral symptoms and spousal relationship status) of a newly developed intervention for individuals with dementia and their family caregivers that combines elements of the established care consultation (CC) approach with additional counseling modules (CC+C). Outcomes for Veterans with dementia and their family caregivers (e.g., depressive symptoms, care-related burden, quality of life, pleasant events, etc.) will be assessed after 6 months of treatment and again at 12 months.

Related Clinical Trials

Explore similar clinical trials based on study characteristics and research focus.

Engaging Caregivers in Dementia Care

NCT02552563

Dementia

COMPLETED NA

Improving Mood and Behavior in Assisted Living Residents Through Skills Training for Their Caregivers

NCT00255866

Dementia Alzheimer Disease

COMPLETED PHASE2/PHASE3

A Dyadic Telehealth Program for Alzheimer's Patients/Caregivers

NCT05102565

Sleep

COMPLETED NA

Dementia Caregivers and Contemplative Practice: A Pilot Study

NCT06075329

Loneliness

COMPLETED NA

Improving Self-Care of Behavioral Variant Frontotemporal Dementia Caregivers

NCT04686266

Behavioral Variant of Frontotemporal Dementia Caregiver Stress Syndrome

COMPLETED NA

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

Background: Dementia affects over 7% of Veterans age 65 and above seeking care through the Veteran's Health Administration (VHA), amounting to one out of every eleven Veterans in some VISNs. The unique functional and behavioral impairments associated with Alzheimer's or a related dementia (ADRD) contribute substantially to psychological and physical morbidity of family caregivers and high rates of nursing home placement, with 60% of ADRD caregivers rating the emotional stress of caregiving as "high or very high," and over one third reporting depressive symptoms. Although numerous evidence-based interventions have been developed to reduce caregiver burden and improve mental health and functional outcomes of the person with dementia, a recent systematic review noted almost none of these interventions "make it off of the shelf" to be readily available in clinical settings. Care Consultation (CC) has emerged as a rare exception. CC is an evidence-based telephone intervention delivering psychoeducation, care coordination, and resource referrals in diverse areas such as safety and mental and behavioral health support. Yet CC's focus on coaching and support is inadequate for dyads experiencing high levels of distress. A stepped-intervention approach would address the VA's efficiency needs while allowing the flexibility for more resource-intensive additional counseling beyond the established CC framework when warranted by high dyad distress. This CDA-2 proposal would move such a dyadic intervention forward.

Objectives: 1) Manualize the integration of care consultation and counseling components (i.e., the CC+C intervention). CC+C is guided by a rehabilitation recovery-based conceptual model to address the most common high distress targets (e.g., relationship distress, Veteran or caregiver depression, anxiety, or pain) using patient-centered approaches. 2) Evaluate preliminary effectiveness and feasibility of the CC+C Intervention in a randomized controlled pilot study of distressed dyads to compare: a) the established CC intervention, to b) the CC+C intervention on Veteran and caregiver outcomes. 3) Conduct exploratory analyses of the CC+C intervention on Veteran long-term care placement at six and 12 months and examine two key treatment moderators (behavioral symptoms and spousal relationship status) that may impact intervention engagement and response to treatment.

The investigators hypothesize that: 1) Caregivers assigned to CC+C will have greater reductions in caregiver burden at 6 months than those assigned to CC alone. 2) Indicators of relationship strain (i.e., marital distress and/or mutuality) will show greater improvement in CC+C than CC at 6 months. 3) Gains in shared pleasant events, social engagement, and quality of life will be greater in CC+C than in CC alone at 6 months. 4) Participants with dementia in both groups will have reduced depressive symptoms at 6 months. The investigators will also explore the impact of the two interventions on rates of placement in long-term care facilities (such as nursing homes, VA Community Living Centers or other supportive living environments) at 6 and 12 months.

Methods: Ten modules combining successful elements from existing manualized therapies and exercises developed by the investigative team during the CDA1 period will be integrated with CC into a draft CC+C intervention manual. The manual will be finalized with input from the mentoring team and an Expert Advisory Panel for completeness, feasibility, and safety and risk considerations. Next 68 distressed Veterans with dementia and their family caregivers will be recruited and randomized to either the CC+C intervention group or the CC comparison group. Patient, caregiver, and relationship outcomes (e.g., burden, depressive symptoms, anxiety, quality of life, relationship distress) will be measured at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months. Treatment implementation and feasibility data will be collected.

Anticipated Impacts: The goal of this career development study is to acquire the knowledge, skills and experience necessary to successfully compete for an RR\&D Merit Review Award evaluating a randomized controlled trial powered to establish efficacy and test effectiveness of the CC+C intervention. Rehabilitation-focused interventions that maximize functioning are essential for successful non-institutional VA dementia care in the future. Work completed during the CDA2 period will serve as a foundation for a career committed to this goal. The impact of this work will be realized when an efficacious and highly-accessible intervention, such as the telephone-based dyadic intervention being piloted, becomes available for aging Veterans and their families.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Alzheimer's Disease Dementia Dementia, Vascular Caregivers Veterans

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

Care Consultation (CC)

Care Consultation (CC): is an established telephone-based, empowerment intervention that uses coaching and emotional support to mobilize family caregivers and individuals with dementia through psychoeducation, resource referral, psychosocial support, and encouragement of informal and formal service use utilization. A computerized clinical tool called the Care Consultation Information System (CCIS) guides the care consultant through a standardized delivery of protocol components. Rather than a strong focus on assessment, this intervention is designed to quickly identify areas of unmet need through brief trigger questions called the "initial assessment" - much like an interview guide - which then immediately shapes development of concrete action plans.

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Care Consultation (CC)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Care Consultation (CC): is an established telephone-based, empowerment intervention that uses coaching and emotional support to mobilize family caregivers and individuals with dementia through psychoeducation, resource referral, psychosocial support, and encouragement of informal and formal service use utilization. A computerized clinical tool called the Care Consultation Information System (CCIS) guides the care consultant through a standardized delivery of protocol components. Rather than a strong focus on assessment, this intervention is designed to quickly identify areas of unmet need through brief trigger questions called the "initial assessment," which then immediately shapes development of concrete action plans.

Care Consultation + Counseling (CC+C)

Care Consultation + Counseling (CC+C): is consistent with the original CC protocol in that the therapist partners with each dyad in a patient-centered way to prioritize unmet needs as identified during the CC initial assessment. Once this phase has been completed, typically within the first 2 sessions, the CC+C therapist will determine when to initiate counseling sessions targeting 8-10 domains of potential distress (grief, hostility, sexual intimacy, etc.). The counseling component of the CC+C intervention incorporates elements of existing manualized interventions that have been tailored for this population and follow a cognitive behavioral therapy framework.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Counseling (C)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The counseling component incorporates elements of existing manualized interventions that have been tailored for this population and follow a cognitive behavioral therapy framework. Counseling sessions will be completed for 8-10 domains of potential distress (grief, hostility, sexual intimacy, etc.).

Care Consultation (CC)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Care Consultation (CC): is an established telephone-based, empowerment intervention that uses coaching and emotional support to mobilize family caregivers and individuals with dementia through psychoeducation, resource referral, psychosocial support, and encouragement of informal and formal service use utilization. A computerized clinical tool called the Care Consultation Information System (CCIS) guides the care consultant through a standardized delivery of protocol components. Rather than a strong focus on assessment, this intervention is designed to quickly identify areas of unmet need through brief trigger questions called the "initial assessment," which then immediately shapes development of concrete action plans.

Interventions

Learn about the drugs, procedures, or behavioral strategies being tested and how they are applied within this trial.

Counseling (C)

The counseling component incorporates elements of existing manualized interventions that have been tailored for this population and follow a cognitive behavioral therapy framework. Counseling sessions will be completed for 8-10 domains of potential distress (grief, hostility, sexual intimacy, etc.).

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Care Consultation (CC)

Care Consultation (CC): is an established telephone-based, empowerment intervention that uses coaching and emotional support to mobilize family caregivers and individuals with dementia through psychoeducation, resource referral, psychosocial support, and encouragement of informal and formal service use utilization. A computerized clinical tool called the Care Consultation Information System (CCIS) guides the care consultant through a standardized delivery of protocol components. Rather than a strong focus on assessment, this intervention is designed to quickly identify areas of unmet need through brief trigger questions called the "initial assessment," which then immediately shapes development of concrete action plans.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

Veterans:

* Must be age 19 or older
* Must have a diagnosis of dementia or a related disorder
* Must live in the community (i.e. not in a VA Community Living Center, nursing home, or other facility)
* Must cohabitate with a caregiver
* Must have reliable access to a telephone
* Must be willing to consent to participate or provide assent in conjunction with proxy consent if their decision-making capacity is compromised

Caregivers:

* Must be age 19 or older
* Must self-identify as assisting with care for at least 8 hours/week
* Must be willing to consent to participate

Exclusion Criteria

Veterans:

* Currently incarcerated
* Currently pregnant
* Dyads experiencing low levels of distress

Caregivers:

* Currently incarcerated
* Currently pregnant
* Experiencing severe cognitive impairment that would impair their ability to communicate during an interview
* Dyads experiencing low levels of distress

Minimum Eligible Age

19 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No