The following is a summary of “Examining Caregiver Outcomes in the CONNECT Intervention for Patients With Advanced Cancer,” published in the MARCH 2023 issue of Pain Management by Semere, et al.

In order to reduce the risk of caregiver fatigue and depressive symptoms, palliative care offers patient and family-centered interventions. For a study, researchers sought to find out if a palliative care intervention (CONNECT) reduced burden, uplifted mood, and increased self-efficacy in those who care for patients with terminal cancer.

Patients and their caregivers were included in the cluster randomized trial from 17 oncology sites in Pennsylvania. Participants went to monthly appointments with nurses who talked about the patient’s symptoms, care objectives, and advanced care planning. They assessed caregiver burden using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scores (HADS-A, range 0–21; HADS-D, range 0–21) at baseline and three months, as well as caregiver anxiety and depressive symptoms, using the Zarit Burden Interview (ZBI-12; range 0-48). Using the Caregiver Inventory, they assessed the self-efficacy of caregivers after three months (CGI; range 0–189).

Three-month assessments were completed by 381 out of the 441 caregivers that were enrolled. At three months, there were no appreciable differences in caregiver burden (adjusted mean difference -0.39; 95% CI -1.07–0.29, P = 0.90), depression (adjusted mean difference -0.22, 95% CI -0.97–0.55, P = 0.26), or anxiety (adjusted mean difference 0.09; 95% CI -1.25–1.43, P = 0.58), between the intervention and standard care. Three months after the intervention began, caregiver self-efficacy was higher in the intervention group than in the control group (adjusted mean difference: 9.36; 95% CI: 0.95-17.77; P = 0.030).

Nonetheless, they reported stronger self-efficacy compared to carers receiving standard care. Caregivers in CONNECT did not report less burden or a better mood. In interventions for palliative care, the study emphasized the necessity for ways to maximize caregiver outcomes.

Reference: jpsmjournal.com/article/S0885-3924(22)01004-1/fulltext