Care Partner Assessment Tool for Dementia

Overseen By Anne Mortensen

Age: 18+

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: University of Wisconsin, Madison

Disqualifiers: Non-English speaking

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Approved in 1 Jurisdiction This treatment is already approved in other countries

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 5

128 Participants Needed

Trial Summary

What is the purpose of this trial?

The purpose of this study is to see whether an adapted questionnaire called the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) for care partners of hospitalized patients living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) (CHAT-AD) can help people with dementia receive better care after they go home from the hospital. Participants will be a care partner ('family member or friend') who provides unpaid care to a hospitalized adult relative or partner to help them take care of themselves because of dementia. Participants can expect to be in this study for 14 days.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether participants need to stop taking their current medications.

What data supports the effectiveness of the treatment Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) for dementia?

The CHAT has been shown to be a feasible and appropriate tool for identifying the needs of care partners of hospitalized older adults, which can help tailor education and skills training to better prepare them for caregiving responsibilities. Although it has not yet been specifically tested for dementia care, its design and validation suggest it could be beneficial in this context. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Is the Care Partner Assessment Tool for Dementia safe for use in humans?

The Care Partner Assessment Tool, also known as CHAT, has been evaluated for its feasibility and appropriateness in hospital settings, but there is no specific safety data available for its use in humans. It is designed to help identify and address the needs of care partners, but it does not involve any direct medical treatment or intervention. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

How does the Care Partner Assessment Tool for Dementia differ from other treatments for dementia?

The Care Partner Assessment Tool for Dementia is unique because it focuses on identifying and preparing care partners (family members or friends) of people with dementia during hospitalization, rather than directly treating the dementia itself. This tool helps ensure that care partners are equipped with the necessary skills and information to support their loved ones, which is a novel approach compared to traditional treatments that primarily target the symptoms of dementia. ^{1 3 4 5 6}

Research Team

Beth Fields, PhD

Principal Investigator

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Eligibility Criteria

This trial is for adult care partners who provide unpaid assistance to a hospitalized relative or partner with Alzheimer's disease or related dementias (ADRD). Participants must be over 18 and speak English. It's not suitable for those who cannot communicate in English.

Inclusion Criteria

I am 18 years old or older.

I am an unpaid caregiver for a relative or partner with ADRD in the hospital.

Exclusion Criteria

I do not speak English.

Timeline

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Adaptation and Co-design

Adaptation of CHAT-AD through co-design sessions with stakeholders

4 months

5 co-design videoconference sessions

Recruitment and Randomization

Recruitment of care partners and randomization into intervention or control groups

2-4 weeks

Intervention

Participants receive either the adapted CHAT-AD intervention or standard care

14 days

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for outcomes such as care partner satisfaction and burden

72 hours post-discharge

Treatment Details

Interventions

• Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool

Trial Overview The study is testing the CHAT-AD, an assessment tool designed to improve post-hospital care for people with dementia. Care partners will use this questionnaire to help ensure better ongoing care once the patient returns home from the hospital.

Participant Groups

Group I: Adjusted CHAT-AD Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Using CHAT, participants will be asked questions about their needs to fully support and care for their loved one after the loved one is released from the hospital.

Group II: Standard of Care Active Control 1 Intervention

Participants in this arm will only receive standard of care.

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

University of Wisconsin, Madison

Lead Sponsor

Trials

1,249

Recruited

3,255,000+

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Collaborator

Trials

2,896

Recruited

8,053,000+

National Institute on Aging (NIA)

Collaborator

Trials

1,841

Recruited

28,150,000+

Findings from Research

The Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) is being adapted for use with care partners of hospitalized individuals living with dementia, aiming to enhance their preparedness for caregiving after discharge.

A pilot randomized controlled trial will evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of the adapted tool (D-CHAT) over approximately 60 months, with the goal of improving hospital care processes and outcomes for both patients and their care partners.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Adapting and Testing the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool for Use in Dementia Care: Protocol for a 2 Sequential Phase Study. Fields, B., Werner, N., Shah, MN., et al.[2023]

The implementation of a clinician-carer communication tool, known as TOP 5, over 12 months in 21 Australian hospitals significantly increased clinician confidence in caring for patients with dementia, as reported by 798 clinicians.

While there was no overall change in incident-reported falls across all hospitals, one hospital with a matched control ward saw an average reduction of 6.85 falls per month in the intervention ward, suggesting potential improvements in patient safety.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Improving clinician-carer communication for safer hospital care: a study of the 'TOP 5' strategy in patients with dementia. Luxford, K., Axam, A., Hasnip, F., et al.[2022]

The Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) was found to be easy to understand and complete by care partners of hospitalized older adults, indicating its feasibility for use in clinical settings.

Care partners reported that the CHAT was useful in identifying their needs and those of the older adults they care for, supporting its face validity and acceptability for improving care partner support in hospitals.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluation of Face Validity and Acceptability of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool. Fields, B., Carbery, M., Schulz, R., et al.[2023]

The Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) was developed and validated to assess the needs of care partners for aging adults during hospital stays, involving input from 4 care partners and 19 experts in the field.

CHAT demonstrated strong content validity with 22 out of 24 items accepted, indicating it effectively captures care partners' backgrounds, preferences, and training needs, which can help healthcare practitioners provide better support.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The Development and Content Validation of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool. Fields, B., Schulz, R., Terhorst, L., et al.[2022]

The Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT) was developed to effectively identify the educational and skill training needs of care partners for hospitalized older adults, showing strong support from caregiving experts (70-100% agreement).

Qualitative interviews with hospital administrators and practitioners confirmed that the CHAT is intuitive and clear, highlighting its feasibility for implementation and the importance of addressing care partners' needs to enhance their caregiving capabilities.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluating the Appropriateness and Feasibility of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT). Carbery, M., Schulz, R., Rodakowski, J., et al.[2021]

The adapted Measure of Support in Conversation (MSC-D) and Measure of Participation in Conversation (MPC-D) scales show good to excellent reliability for assessing communication support in people with dementia, based on ratings from 25 casual conversations.

Inter-rater reliability for MSC-D was good (ICC = 0.718-0.812) and excellent for MPC-D (ICC = 0.904-0.945), indicating that these tools can consistently evaluate the quality of interactions between people with dementia and their conversation partners.

NCBI (Pubmed)

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Measuring the interactions of people with dementia and their conversation partners: a preliminary adaption of the Kagan measures of support and participation in conversation. Mok, Z., Steel, G., Russell, C., et al.[2021]

References

1. Canada pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Adapting and Testing the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool for Use in Dementia Care: Protocol for a 2 Sequential Phase Study. [2023]

2. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Improving clinician-carer communication for safer hospital care: a study of the 'TOP 5' strategy in patients with dementia. [2022]

3. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluation of Face Validity and Acceptability of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool. [2023]

4. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

The Development and Content Validation of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool. [2022]

5. Switzerland pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Evaluating the Appropriateness and Feasibility of the Care Partner Hospital Assessment Tool (CHAT). [2021]

6. England pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Measuring the interactions of people with dementia and their conversation partners: a preliminary adaption of the Kagan measures of support and participation in conversation. [2021]