Despair Among Cancer Patients and Oncologists Clinical Trial
Official title:
Enhancing Hope Among Patients With Poor-Prognosis Breast Cancer and Oncologists
The study will access whether breast cancer patients and oncologists can become more hopeful after participating in a "hope enhancement workshop." Several validated tools, Adult Hope Scale (AHS), Herth Hope Index (HHI), Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)" and other quality of life parameter surveys, will be administered at specified intervals.
The aim of the proposed research is to study the impact of hope interventions on the coping
behavior of women with advanced breast cancer and physicians who provide care to patients
with cancer.
It is the investigator's contention, that improved hopefulness among cancer patients can be
manifest in improved Quality of Life (QOL). The challenge is to find specific interventions
that can optimize hopefulness and thereby direct individuals to adopt behavior styles that
contribute to a positive effect on QOL.
Two separate single-day interventions and hope applications will be developed for patients
and oncologists, respectively. What will be common for each workshop is that there will be an
experienced counselor designated as "coordinator" who will be in charge of implementing the
program and monitoring group dynamics. The interventions will be structured with the program
advancing from the identification of goals to the development of directions reasonable
pathways for achieving the delineated goals. In addition to goal-directed exercises, the
workshop will employ narrative techniques which utilize literary triggers as a springboard
for reflective writing.
The smartphone-based application will prompt study participants on a daily basis to engage in
additional, short activities designed to augment hopefulness, assess progress in achieving
goals, and identifying challenges. In addition, the application will allow sustained
interaction of workshop participants through social media exchange.
Course materials will be sent to study participants one week prior to the conduct of the
workshop.
Baseline assessment of hopefulness will be carried out via the aforementioned validated
scales on the day of the workshop.
Re-assessment of hopefulness will occur at the end of the day and at the 3- month interval
visits.
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