NCT06168604

Evaluating the Efficacy of the Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit

The Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit: A Training Program to Support Family Caregivers of Persons With ADRD

• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 440 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Weill Medical College of Cornell University · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 21 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

This study will evaluate the Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit (PICT), a multicomponent intervention for caregivers of people with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). PICT provides training in observational pain assessment and coaching in effective pain communication techniques. It will recruit participants from programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) and partnering health care clinics. The investigators hypothesize that PICT will help caregivers to recognize and communicate about pain in their care recipients.

Detailed description

Up to 60% of older persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) suffer from bothersome pain and nearly half experience pain-related activity limitations. Despite best-practice guidelines calling for routine pain assessment of persons with ADRD, pain is severely under-detected and poorly managed in this population. A major barrier to the identification and treatment of pain in persons with ADRD is impaired communication. Informal (family) caregivers are well situated to detect pain and facilitate management in persons with ADRD, given their extensive involvement in care activities. However, caregivers receive virtually no guidance or training in these areas. The Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit (PICT) is a multicomponent intervention for ADRD caregivers that provides training in observational pain assessment and coaching in effective pain communication techniques. PICT consists of 4 weekly telephone sessions (30-60 minutes each) delivered by a trained interventionist. This project aims to (1) determine the efficacy of PICT compared with an Attention Control (AC) condition, (2) identify the patient and caregiver factors that may moderate the effects of PICT on study outcomes, and (3) evaluate the mechanisms (theoretically-derived variables) by which PICT affects study outcomes. Participants will be recruited from programs of all-inclusive care for the elderly (PACE) programs and partnering health care clinics. They will complete assessments at 0 (baseline), 1, 3, and 6 months.

Conditions

• Caregiver Burden
• Cognitive Impairment
• Dementia
• Alzheimer Disease
• Pain, Chronic

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit	The Pain Identification and Communication Toolkit (PICT) is a multicomponent (6 module) intervention for family caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). PICT consists of 4 weekly telephone sessions (30-60 minutes each) delivered by a trained interventionist
BEHAVIORAL	Health Promotion Program	The attention control (AC) condition is referred to as the Health Promotion Program (HPP). The HPP will consist of 4 weekly telephone sessions (30-60 minutes each) but focus on caregiver health promotion topics, such as nutrition, exercise, and sleep.

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-12-14
• Primary completion: 2027-10-30
• Completion: 2027-10-30
• First posted: 2023-12-13
• Last updated: 2026-02-12

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States