Health Communication clinical trials

Project to Improve Communication About Serious Illness--Hospital Study: Comparative Effectiveness Trial (Trial 2)

The objective of this protocol is to test the effectiveness of a Jumpstart intervention on patient-centered outcomes for patients with chronic illness by ensuring that they receive care that is concordant with their goals over time, and across settings and providers. This study is particularly interested in understanding the effect of the intervention to improve quality of palliative care for patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) but will also include other common chronic, life-limiting illnesses. The specific aims are: 1. To evaluate the efficacy of the Survey-based Patient/Clinician Jumpstart compared to the EHR based clinician Jumpstart and usual care for improving quality of care; the primary outcome is EHR documentation of a goals-of-care discussion from randomization through hospitalization or 30 days. Secondary outcomes include: a) intensity of care outcomes (e.g., ICU use, ICU and hospital length of stay, costs of care during the hospitalization, 7 and 30 day readmission); and b) patient- and family-reported outcomes assessed by surveys at 3 days and 4 weeks after randomization, including occurrence and quality of goals-of-care discussions in the hospital, goal-concordant care, psychological symptoms, and quality of life. 2. To conduct a mixed-methods evaluation of the implementation of the intervention, guided by the RE-AIM framework for implementation science, incorporating quantitative evaluation of the intervention's reach and adoption, as well as qualitative analyses of interviews with participants, to explore barriers and facilitators to future implementation and dissemination.