Evaluating psycho-educational interventions for informal carers of patients receiving cancer care or palliative care: Strengths and limitations of different study designs

Palliative Medicine

Volumn 25, Issue 4, 2011, Pages 345-356

  Schildmann, Eva K ^a,b   Higginson, Irene J ^b  

^a HELIOS KLINIKUM BERLIN BUCH   (Germany)

^b KING'S COLLEGE LONDON   (United Kingdom)

Author keywords

Caregivers; clinical trials as topic; evaluation studies; intervention studies; palliative care; research design

Indexed keywords

ARTICLE; CAREGIVER; CASE CONTROL STUDY; CLINICAL ASSESSMENT; CLINICAL EFFECTIVENESS; COHORT ANALYSIS; CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY; EVALUATION; EXPERIMENTAL STUDY; HUMAN; INTERVENTION STUDY; MEDLINE; NEOPLASM; OBSERVATIONAL STUDY; PALLIATIVE THERAPY; PATIENT CARE; PRETEST POSTTEST DESIGN; PSYCHOEDUCATION; RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL (TOPIC); SYSTEMATIC REVIEW;

CAREGIVERS; EVALUATION STUDIES AS TOPIC; HEALTH EDUCATION; HUMANS; NEOPLASMS; PALLIATIVE CARE; RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS AS TOPIC; RESEARCH DESIGN;

EID: 79957696637     PISSN: 02692163     EISSN: 1477030X     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1177/0269216310389223     Document Type: Article

References (36)

1. National Institute for Clinical Excellence. Improving supportive and palliative care for adults with cancer: the manual. National Institute for Clinical Excellence, 2004.
2. Grande G, Stajduhar K, Aoun S, et al. Supporting lay carers in end of life care: current gaps and future priorities. Palliat Med 2009; 23: 339-344.
3. Harding R and Higginson I. What is the best way to help caregivers in cancer and palliative care? A systematic literature review of interventions and their effectiveness. Palliat Med 2003; 17: 63-74. (Pubitemid 36193223)
4. Harding R, Higginson IJ, Leam C, et al. Evaluation of a short-term group intervention for informal carers of patients attending a home palliative care service. J Pain Symptom Manag 2004; 27: 396-408. (Pubitemid 38569645)
5. Sorensen S, Pinquart M and Duberstein P. How effective are interventions with caregivers? An updated meta-analysis. Gerontologist 2002; 42: 356-372. (Pubitemid 34693550)
6. Bausewein C and Higginson IJ. Appropriate methods to assess the effectiveness and efficacy of treatments or interventions to control cancer pain. J Palliat Med 2004; 7: 423-430. (Pubitemid 38980578)
7. Grande GE and Todd CJ. Why are trials in palliative care so difficult? Palliat Med 2000; 14: 69-74.
8. Bennett MI. Principles of designing clinical trials in palliative care. In: Addington-Hall JM, Bruera E, Higginson IJ and Payne S (eds) Research methods in palliative care. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
9. Costantini M and Higginson IJ. Experimental and quasi-experimental designs. In: Addington-Hall JM, Bruera E, Higginson IJ and Payne S (eds) Research methods in palliative care. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007, pp.85-97.
10. McQuay H and Moore A. Need for rigorous assessment of palliative care. Br Med J 1994; 309: 1315-1316.
11. Costantini M. Study designs in palliative medicine. In: Bruera E, Higginson I, Ripamonti C and von Gunten C (eds) Textbook of palliative medicine. London: Hodder Arnold, 2006, pp.178-184.
12. Heinrich RL and Schag CC. Stress and activity management: group treatment for cancer patients and spouses. J Consult Clin Psychol 1985; 53: 439-446. (Pubitemid 15046923)
13. McMillan SC, Small BJ, Weitzner M, et al. Impact of coping skills intervention with family caregivers of hospice patients with cancer: a randomized clinical trial. Cancer 2006; 106: 214-222. (Pubitemid 43032568)
14. Toseland RW, Blanchard CG and McCallion P. A problem solving intervention for caregivers of cancer patients. Soc Sci Med 1995; 40: 517-528.
15. Walsh K, Jones L, Tookman A, et al. Reducing emotional distress in people caring for patients receiving specialist palliative care. Randomised trial. Br J Psychiatr 2007; 190: 142-147.
16. Hudson PL, Aranda S and Hayman-White K. A psychoeducational intervention for family caregivers of patients receiving palliative care: a randomized controlled trial. J Pain Symptom Manag 2005; 30: 329-341. (Pubitemid 41527119)
17. Rinck GC, van den Bos GAM, Kleijnen J, de Haes HJCJM, Schadé E and Veenhof CHN. Methodological issues in effectiveness research on palliative cancer care: a systematic review. J Clin Oncol 1997; 15: 1697-1707. (Pubitemid 27167411)
18. Brewin CR and Bradley C. Patient preferences and randomised clinical trials. Br Med J 1989; 299: 313-315. (Pubitemid 19186677)
19. Silverman WA and Altman DG. Patients' preferences and randomised trials. Lancet 1996; 347: 171-174. (Pubitemid 26025160)
20. Kinsella G, Cooper B, Picton C and Murtagh D. A review of the measurement of caregiver and family burden in palliative care. J Palliat Care 1998; 14: 37-45. (Pubitemid 128639874)
21. Hudson PL and Hayman-White K. Measuring the psychosocial characteristics of family caregivers of palliative care patients: psychometric properties of nine self-report instruments. J Pain Symptom Manag 2006; 31: 215-228.
22. Hudson P and Payne S. The future of family caregiving: research, social policy and clinical practice. In: Hudson P and Payne S (eds) Family carers in palliative care a guide for health and social care professionals. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.
23. Salisbury C and Bosanquet N. Assessing palliative care is difficult. Br Med J 2000; 320: 942. (Pubitemid 30182402)
24. Susser M. The tribulations of trials-intervention in communities. Am J Publ Health 1995; 85: 156-158.
25. Hudson P, Quinn K, Kristjanson L, et al. Evaluation of a psycho-educational group programme for family caregivers in home-based palliative care. Palliat Med 2008; 22: 270-280. (Pubitemid 351795932)
26. Kwak J, Salmon JR, Acquaviva KD, Brandt K and Egan KA. Benefits of training family caregivers on experiences of closure during end-of-life care. J Pain Symptom Manag 2007; 33: 434-445. (Pubitemid 46505076)
27. White KD, Abrew N, Auret K, Graham N and Duggan G. Learn now; live well: an educational programme for caregivers. Int J Palliat Nurs 2008; 14: 497-501.
28. Pasacreta JV, Barg F, Nuamah I and McCorkle R. Participant characteristics before and 4 months after attendance at a family caregiver cancer education program. Cancer Nurs 2000; 23: 295-303. (Pubitemid 30609815)
29. Robinson KD, Angeletti KA, Barg FK, Pasacreta JV, McCorkle R and Yasko JM. The development of a family caregiver cancer education program. J Canc Educ 1998; 13: 116-121. (Pubitemid 28299826)
30. Cameron JI, Shin JL, Williams D and Stewart DE. A brief problem-solving intervention for family caregivers to individuals with advanced cancer. J Psychosom Res 2004; 57: 137-143. (Pubitemid 39296806)
31. Simon S and Higginson IJ. Evaluation of hospital palliative care teams: strengths and weaknesses of the beforeafter study design and strategies to improve it. Palliat Med 2009; 23: 23-28.
32. Last JM. A dictionary of epidemiology, 4th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
33. Howard L and Thornicroft G. Patient preference randomised controlled trials in mental health research. Br J Psychiatr 2006; 188: 303-304.
34. Lambert MF and Wood J. Incorporating patient preferences into randomized trials. J Clin Epidemiol 2000; 53: 163-166. (Pubitemid 30151221)
35. Higginson IJ, McCrone P, Hart SR, Burman R, Silber E and Edmonds PM. Is short-term palliative care cost-effective in multiple sclerosis? A randomized phase II trial. J Pain Symptom Manag 2009; 38: 816-826.
36. Jordhoy MS, Kaasa S, Fayers P, Ovreness T, Underland G and Ahlner-Elmqvist M. Challenges in palliative care research; recruitment, attrition and compliance: experience from a randomized controlled trial. Palliat Med 1999; 13: 299-310. (Pubitemid 29378208)