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Clinical Trial Details — Status: Recruiting

Administrative data

NCT number NCT04180722
Other study ID # 1000000000
Secondary ID
Status Recruiting
Phase N/A
First received
Last updated
Start date March 1, 2021
Est. completion date March 30, 2025

Study information

Verified date November 2023
Source The Hospital for Sick Children
Contact Munazzah Ambreen
Phone (416) 813-7654
Email munazzah.ambreen@sickkids.ca
Is FDA regulated No
Health authority
Study type Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The rising prevalence of ventilator assisted individuals (VAIs) who depend on Home Mechanical Ventilation (HMV) is an escalating public health challenge with important social and economic implications. VAIs are high cost users of the healthcare system, requiring competent healthcare and family caregivers for successful transition to HMV. The TTLive Study will evaluate the effect of a virtual transition intervention delivered through a virtual care platform, compared to usual care on emergent healthcare utilization, caregiver burden, health cost-effectiveness including cost of family caregiver time, and efficiency of clinical encounters for individuals newly transitioning to HMV.


Description:

Ventilator Assisted Individuals (VAIs) on HMVs are an ideal population for a virtual care platform that offers a comprehensive bundle of virtual care solutions, sophisticated enough for the complex care demands of this population. A first complex care demand is the challenging clinical follow ups that impose significant financial and medical costs associated with travel to healthcare appointments, and which can predispose these patients to adverse events during travel periods due to an inability to maintain access to some vital technology such as suctioning. A second complex care demand is the multiple transitions in care as some VAIs on HMVs move between and within healthcare sectors due to changing health status or care needs, and multi-morbidity. Formalized handovers between providers are lacking. This results in information gaps and additional and sometimes unnecessary time spent by healthcare providers searching for care plan documentation. A third demand is the lack of timely access to respiratory health professionals experienced in HMV and availability of home follow-up, particularly in the early stages of transition which impedes the transition process. Virtual Care can be defined as any interaction between patients and/or members of their circle of care, occurring remotely, using any form of communication or information technology, with the aim of facilitating or maximizing the effectiveness and quality of patient care. It includes electronic messaging, tele-consultations and tele-monitoring. The advantages of virtual care include the following: 1) enabling the preconditions for truly empowered patients and patient/family-centered care; 2) overcoming the silos of care, and 3) reducing redundancy within the healthcare system by greater knowledge sharing across healthcare sectors. Virtual care provides an opportunity to make healthcare better by overcoming constraints of distance, cost, and time. In TTLive Study, a multi-component platform delivered on an electronic tablet developed for complex care management at home is used in partnership with the patient, family and healthcare team to enable the following: 1) virtual home visits; 2) customizable care plans; 3) basic clinical workflows that incorporate reminders, completion of symptom profiles and tele-monitoring, and 4) secure communication via messaging, audio, and video calls. Investigators hypothesize that this virtual transition intervention will reduce emergent healthcare utilization, improve the experience of care, reduce caregiver burden, become more cost-effective than usual care, and enable more efficient use of healthcare provider time.


Recruitment information / eligibility

Status Recruiting
Enrollment 440
Est. completion date March 30, 2025
Est. primary completion date December 30, 2024
Accepts healthy volunteers No
Gender All
Age group N/A and older
Eligibility Participant Eligibility Criteria Inclusion Criteria: i. Individuals newly initiated (in-hospital or as an outpatient) on a ventilator for HMV prescribed by a participating ventilation program in the previous two months. ii. Reads, writes and understands English if does not have a caregiver than can do so. iii. Provides informed consent. Exclusion criteria: i. Projected life expectancy of = 2 months. ii. Significant cognitive impairment and absence/inability of a family caregiver to use aTouchAway™ or complete questionnaires. iii. Uncontrolled psychiatric illness. iv. No internet access (SIM cards and data costs will be covered by the project budget). v. Currently enrolled in a research study to evaluate another eHealth platform or care coordination. vi. Plans to move outside of Ontario within the next 12 months. Caregivers Eligibility Criteria Caregiver Inclusion Criteria: i. Primary caregiver of an individual newly initiated (in-hospital or outpatient) on a ventilator for HMV prescribed by a participating clinic in the previous two months; ii. Reads, writes and understands English; and iii. Provides informed consent. Eligibility Criteria for the Qualitative Interviews Investigators will exclude those participants: i. Unable to communicate verbally for the duration of an interview Inclusion Criteria for Healthcare Providers in the Circle of Care for the Intervention Group Healthcare provider of an individual from a participating centre i. Use of the aTouchAway for at least five participant encounters ii. Provides informed consent.

Study Design


Related Conditions & MeSH terms


Intervention

Device:
aTouchAway™ platform
Participants will receive multi-component Virtual Transition Intervention. The four components of the intervention comprise: (1) routine virtual clinic visits scheduled at the same frequency as usual care; (2) virtual care plan and action plan for respiratory infection/deterioration and management of ventilator issues; (3) remote, weekly and monthly monitoring of ventilator and cough assist metrics, VAI symptoms, and oxygen saturations; and (4) as needed clinical consultations triggered by identification of abnormal parameters or requested by the VAI or family caregiver.

Locations

Country Name City State
Canada McMaster Children's Hospital Hamilton Ontario
Canada Children's Hospital, London Health Sciences London Ontario
Canada London Health Sciences Center London Ontario
Canada Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Ottawa Ontario
Canada The Ottawa Hospital Ottawa Ontario
Canada Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center Toronto Ontario
Canada The Hospital for Sick Children Toronto Ontario
Canada West Park Healthcare Centre York Ontario

Sponsors (9)

Lead Sponsor Collaborator
The Hospital for Sick Children Aetonix Systems, Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario, London Health Sciences Centre, McMaster Children's Hospital, Queen's University, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, The Ottawa Hospital, West Park Healthcare Centre

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Canada, 

Outcome

Type Measure Description Time frame Safety issue
Primary ED Visits: ED visit rates at 12 months determined using health administrative databases Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Primary To measure patient reported sense of mastery (Pearlin Mastery Scale; scores range up to 28, higher scores = higher mastery) To measure patient reported sense of mastery, an outcome that is often linked to patient empowerment using the Pearlin Self-Mastery Scale 12 months
Secondary Number of hospital admissions and days in hospital over 6 months using health administrative databases. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Number of hospital admissions and days in hospital over 12 months using health administrative databases. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Hospital free survival using health administrative data at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Hospital free survival using health administrative data at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 Months
Secondary Time to first ED visit and first hospital admission. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Overall survival at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Overall survival at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Respiratory and non-respiratory causes of death at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Respiratory and non-respiratory causes of death at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Number and type of outpatient specialist visits at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Number and type of outpatient specialist visits at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Number of family physician visits at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Number of family physician visits at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Homecare service use at 6 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Homecare service use at 12 months. Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Change in Zarit Burden Interview Score from baseline to 6 months.The 22 items are assessed on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 0 = 'never' to 4 = 'nearly always'. Caregiver Outcome 6 months
Secondary Change in Zarit Burden Interview Score from baseline to 12 months.The 22 items are assessed on a 5-point Likert scale, ranging from 0 = 'never' to 4 = 'nearly always'. Caregiver Outcome 12 months
Secondary Change in study participant health related quality of life using the EQ-5D (adults) and ED-5DY (children) change from baseline and 6 months Health Related Quality of Life Outcome 6 months
Secondary Change in study participant health related quality of life using the EQ-5D (adults) and ED-5DY (children) change from baseline and 12 months Health Related Quality of Life Outcome 12 months
Secondary Quality of care coordination using Family Experiences with Care Coordination (FECC) for qualitative interview participants only Care Coordination Outcome 6 months
Secondary Quality of care coordination using Family Experiences with Care Coordination (FECC) for qualitative interview participants only Care Coordination Outcome 12 months
Secondary Incremental Cost Effectiveness Ratios (ICER) of Virtual Transition intervention compared to usual care in improving patient utility from a societal perspective and using a one-year time horizon Economic Outcome 12 months
Secondary Mean monthly healthcare costs (public, private and caregiver lost time) over 6 months Economic Outcome: Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 6 months
Secondary Mean monthly healthcare costs (public, private and caregiver lost time) over 12 months Economic Outcome: Using health administrative databases and the Ambulatory Health Care Record-modified 12 months
Secondary Encounter time spent by clinicians over 12 months measured using the Care Coordination Measurement Tool HealthCare Provider Outcome 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes n(%) of 5 clinic visits conducted virtually as opposed to face to face 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes n (%) of virtual data downloads available for the virtual clinic visits 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes n(%) participants that completed the virtual care plan within 6 weeks after intervention initiation 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes n (%) of the 52 weekly check-ins completed 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes n(%) of the 12 monthly S3-NIV check-ins completed 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes number of ad hoc questions/concerns in which healthcare team contacted via the platform 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcomes number of status yellow monitoring alerts initiated based on the weekly and monthly symptom monitoring and time to alert being addressed by a member of the circle of care 12 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcome- Qualitative Interviews Qualitative interviews to explore the experience with the aTouchAway intervention by study participants, caregivers and healthcare providers 6 months
Secondary Process Measure Outcome- Qualitative Interviews Qualitative interviews to explore the experience with the aTouchAway intervention by study participants, caregivers and healthcare providers 12 months