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ACT for People With Dementia Experiencing Psychological Distress

NCT04630912 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 6

Last updated 2022-08-19

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Introduction: People with dementia have a high prevalence of psychological distress but are under-served with evidence-based psychological interventions. To promote choice and improve clinical outcomes, there is a necessity to test different psychological intervention options for this population. Purpose: To investigate the effectiveness and acceptability of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for people with dementia, considering carer-supported, remote delivery and necessary therapy adaptations. Methods: A hermeneutic single case efficacy design (HSCED) series was used to analyse therapy process and change for three clients with dementia and psychological distress. Quantitative and qualitative data was collated ('rich case records') and analysed by three independent psychotherapy experts ('judges') who determined the outcome for each client. Results: Over the course of therapy, it was concluded that one client with dementia made positive changes, specifically reliable reductions in psychological distress, which were largely attributable to Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Two clients remained unchanged. Discussion/Conclusion: Where change was achieved, the ACT-specific processes of values, committed action and acceptance, in combination with non-specific therapy factors including a strong client-carer relationship, existing client interests and individualised therapy adaptations, were facilitative of change. Hence, ACT may be feasible and effective by helping carers to better meet the needs of their loved ones with dementia. Future research to optimise ACT delivery in this population may be beneficial. Furthermore, the assessment of carer factors (e.g., their psychological flexibility, the client-carer relationship) may strengthen the evidence-base for systemic ACT-use.

Conditions

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
  • Dementia

Interventions

OTHER

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy

There is no specific protocol for ACT with dementia, therefore a published ACT protocol, 'Better Living with Illness' (Brassington et al., 2016), will be used flexibly to guide the intervention.

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust

    collaborator OTHER_GOV

  • University of Nottingham

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Danielle De Boos, Dr · University of Nottingham

Study Design

Allocation
NA
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Model
SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age
65 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2021-01-20
Primary Completion
2021-10-14
Completion
2022-07-22

Countries

  • United Kingdom

Study Locations

More Related Trials

Entities

Diseases

Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT04630912 on ClinicalTrials.gov