Learning Skills Together Family Caregiver Complex Intervention

Summary

Learning Skills Together (LST) is a 6-week psychoeducational intervention focused on complex care (nursing) tasks completed by family caregivers to persons living with Alzheimer's Disease and related dementias. This study aims to test the efficacy of LST at reducing caregiver depression and negative appraisal of behavioral symptoms of dementia by building caregiver self-efficacy. To do this, eligible participants will be randomized into an intervention group (LST) or a control group condition focused on healthy living for family caregivers. Participants will be asked to complete surveys before and after participating in the intervention or the control condition to determine whether change in hypothesized outcomes can be attributed to the intervention condition.

Conditions

• Dementia
• Alzheimer Disease
• Caregiver Burden
• Self Efficacy

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Learning Skills Together Intervention

Learning Skills Together is a 6-week psychoeducational intervention developed to improve caregivers' confidence when completing complex care tasks (e.g., using a gait belt). Participants are asked to attend six 1.5-hour Zoom-delivered group discussion sessions once per week, which cover topics such as how to communicate with someone who is living with dementia, medication management, and home safety. Participants are also provided with a workbook that accompanies each lesson, and includes short readings, videos, additional resources, as well as weekly practice and reflection exercises.

BEHAVIORAL

Caregiver Healthy Living Intervention

Participants in the Caregiver Healthy Living Intervention will participate in a 6-week educational intervention to help improve caregiver health behaviors (e.g., getting enough sleep). Participants are asked to attend six 1.5-hour Zoom-delivered group discussion sessions once per week, which cover topics such as how to eat a healthy diet, getting enough physical activity, and taking care of mental health. Participants are also provided a workbook that includes short readings and additional resources.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute on Aging (NIA)

  collaborator NIH

• Case Western Reserve University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Kylie N Meyer, PhD, Mac · Case Western Reserve University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2024-01-30

Primary Completion

2026-12-20

Completion

2027-04-30

Countries

• United States

Study Locations