Caregiving Clinical Trial
Official title:
Self Care TALK to Promote AD Spousal Caregiver Health
Most individuals with Alzheimer's or dementia return home, where their care is supported by
family and friends. Although family caring at home is usually rewarding, it is often
challenging, too. The demands and responsibilities of caring for a loved one at home can be
stressful. The actual activities of caregiving vary according to the needs of the
individual, but can include helping with bathing, dressing, eating, and many other
activities. Caregivers must learn care techniques and how to manage changes in roles and
lifestyle. While adjusting to these changes, caregivers may be advised to 'take care' of
themselves, but may not receive guidance or support for doing this. In this study, we are
testing a self-care intervention for older, spouse caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's or
dementia to see how helpful the intervention is in reducing distress and in helping
caregivers adopt and maintain healthy lifestyle behaviors.
We have developed an intervention for caregivers that is called Self-Care TALK. The
intervention includes creating a health-promoting, self-care education and support
partnership between caregivers and nurses through the use of weekly telephone conversations.
Each conversation focuses on a health-related topic, such as: healthy habits, building
self-esteem, focusing on the positive, avoiding role overload, communicating, and building
meaning. The conversations follow a basic format, but also are unique to each person.
Participants complete questionnaires before and after the intervention, so that we can test
the effect of participation in Self-Care TALK on caregiver health.
We know that education and support about self-care can be achieved through partnerships
between family caregivers and health care professionals. Our goal is to build on this
knowledge in testing whether participation in the Self-Care TALK intervention will result in
less distress and better health and well-being for spouse caregivers, compared to caregivers
who receive no additional care beyond usual education and support. In working toward this
goal, we are using a partnership approach, in which nurses and caregivers discuss several
health-related topics and mutually identify creative solutions for caregivers to incorporate
self-care and health-promotion strategies into their daily routines. Promoting healthy
outcomes for caregivers is essential to supporting their personal well-being, and to
fostering their ability to continue home care for their loved one.
Status | Completed |
Enrollment | 46 |
Est. completion date | August 2008 |
Est. primary completion date | March 2008 |
Accepts healthy volunteers | No |
Gender | Both |
Age group | 60 Years and older |
Eligibility |
Inclusion Criteria: - Age 60 years or older - Married or married equivalent - Living with and caring for a spouse/partner diagnosed with Alzheimer's or dementia within the last 2 years - Can participate by telephone - Speaks English |
Allocation: Randomized, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Open Label
Country | Name | City | State |
---|---|---|---|
n/a |
Lead Sponsor | Collaborator |
---|---|
University of Kansas Medical Center | National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), National Institutes of Health (NIH) |
Type | Measure | Description | Time frame | Safety issue |
---|---|---|---|---|
Primary | SF-36v2, PCS (perceived physical health), SF-36v2, MCS (perceived mental health) | 2 and 6 months post enrollment | No | |
Secondary | M-CSI; modified (caregiver strain), SRAHP (self-efficacy for health), CES-D (depression) | 2 and 6 months post enrollment | No |
Status | Clinical Trial | Phase | |
---|---|---|---|
Completed |
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