EMPOWER 3: Improving Palliative Care Health Literacy and Utilization

NCT ID: NCT04733469

Last Updated: 2024-06-18

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

172 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2021-03-31

Study Completion Date

2025-08-31

Brief Summary

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Through this award, Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR, a psychologist at the Tulane Cancer Center in Louisiana, will lead a study called EMPOWER 3 designed to test an educational intervention to help patients understand palliative care, use it, and feel better emotionally and physically. Participants will be adults with serious cancer diagnoses. Participants will be randomized into two groups. Patients in the control group will get enhanced usual care, meaning standard cancer care and several additional healthcare-related brochures. Patients in the intervention group will get enhanced usual care plus an educational video developed by the investigators and other materials designed to increase understanding and use of palliative care. Family members of patients in the intervention group may also attend if desired. The investigators will track participants' understanding of palliative care, attitudes toward palliative care, symptoms over 6 months of follow-up, and palliative care utilization.

Detailed Description

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Conditions

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Cancer Neoplasm Malignant

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

SUPPORTIVE_CARE

Blinding Strategy

DOUBLE

Participants Caregivers

Study Groups

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Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention + Enhanced Usual Care

Intervention participants receive the Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention in addition to Enhanced Usual Care

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

The Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention includes a multimedia educational video plus additional resources to reinforce the video content. The Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention includes the following:

* A multimedia educational video about palliative care that is individually tailored to each patient's level of education and health literacy
* Take-home and online copies of the video for repeat viewing
* A video summary
* A question prompt list patients can use to ask clinicians more questions about palliative care
* Contact information and brochures for local palliative care programs

Enhanced Usual Care

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enhanced Usual Care refers to usual care plus minor enhancement to improve quality and standardization. Enhanced Usual Care includes the following:

* Usual care
* A packet of flyers and handouts with general information on psychosocial oncology services derived from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC), and American Cancer Society (ACS)

Enhanced Usual Care

Control participants receive Enhanced Usual Care

Group Type OTHER

Enhanced Usual Care

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enhanced Usual Care refers to usual care plus minor enhancement to improve quality and standardization. Enhanced Usual Care includes the following:

* Usual care
* A packet of flyers and handouts with general information on psychosocial oncology services derived from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC), and American Cancer Society (ACS)

Interventions

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Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention

The Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention includes a multimedia educational video plus additional resources to reinforce the video content. The Multimedia Psychoeducational Intervention includes the following:

* A multimedia educational video about palliative care that is individually tailored to each patient's level of education and health literacy
* Take-home and online copies of the video for repeat viewing
* A video summary
* A question prompt list patients can use to ask clinicians more questions about palliative care
* Contact information and brochures for local palliative care programs

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Enhanced Usual Care

Enhanced Usual Care refers to usual care plus minor enhancement to improve quality and standardization. Enhanced Usual Care includes the following:

* Usual care
* A packet of flyers and handouts with general information on psychosocial oncology services derived from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC), and American Cancer Society (ACS)

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

1. Adult, age 18 or older
2. Meets criteria for 2a or 2b. 2a) The patient's doctor believes they may be appropriate for palliative cancer care OR 2b) The patient has a new diagnosis, recurrence, or progression of cancer in the past 90 days AND any of the following:

* Advanced cancer, such as:

* Lung Cancer: Stage IIIB or IV non-small cell, or extensive stage small cell
* Breast Cancer: Stage IV
* Gastrointestinal (GI) Cancers: Unresectable stage III or stage IV
* Genitourinary (GU) Cancers: Stage IV
* Melanoma: Stage IV
* Hematologic Malignancies

* Leukemia (e.g., acute myeloid leukemia \[AML\], acute lymphoblastic leukemia \[ALL\], chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), chronic lymphocytic leukemia \[CLL\]): advanced stage, treatment refractory, poor prognosis cell type or chromosomal abnormalities, older age
* Lymphoma: Stage IV or treatment refractory Hodgkin's disease or non-Hodgkin's lymphoma Multiple Myeloma: elevated β2-microglobulin, albumin \<3.5, PCLI \>1%, CRP \>6µg/mL, elevated LDH, plasmablastic morphology, or abnormal chromosome 13
* Advanced heart, lung, renal (kidney), or liver disease
* Two or more severe symptoms (≥7 on 0-10 scale): pain, tiredness, drowsiness, nausea, bad appetite, shortness of breath, depression, or anxiety
3. Patient can understand spoken or written English
4. Patient receives care in southeast Louisiana

Exclusion Criteria

* Known history of receiving specialty palliative care or hospice
* Significant psychiatric or other co-morbid disease that would prohibit informed consent or participation in the study
* Unlikely to complete any follow-up surveys
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

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American Cancer Society, Inc.

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

University Medical Center-New Orleans

UNKNOWN

Sponsor Role collaborator

Tulane University

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR

Associate Professor of Psychology, Psychiatry, and Oncology

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR, MBA

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Tulane University

Locations

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University Medical Center

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Tulane University

New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

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United States

Central Contacts

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Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR, MBA

Role: CONTACT

504-314-7545

Facility Contacts

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Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR, MBA

Role: primary

Michael Hoerger, PhD, MSCR, MBA

Role: primary

Other Identifiers

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134579-RSG-20-058-01-PCSM

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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