Group Advanced Care Planning Pilot for Veterans
VA Palo Alto Health Care System
Summary
The proposed research aims to engage participants in group educational sessions to facilitate learning of topics related to advanced care planning and to determine whether this approach is more effective than usual care alone.
Description
The purpose of this study is to compare usual care against a group advanced care planning intervention comprised of two sessions led by trained community health workers or health educators from VA Palo Alto. A total of 60 participants will be randomly assigned to either usual care (n=30) or usual care + group advanced care planning intervention (n=30). Those in usual care will be mailed some educational materials about advanced care planning that they may review independently. Those in the group advanced care planning arm will participate in two 60-90 minute educational sessions led by a commu…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18+ years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: 1. All patients \>18 years old with newly diagnosed cancer are eligible. 2. Patients must have the ability to understand and willingness to provide verbal consent 3. Participants must speak English Exclusion Criteria: 1. Inability to consent to the study 2. Plans to move within the area and leave the VA system within 4 months
Interventions
- BehavioralGroup Advance Care Planning Education
Those assigned to the group ACP arm will receive usual care and the intervention which consists of 2 virtual or in-person sessions for a total of 2 hours by a trained community health worker/health educator. Sessions will introduce advanced care planning, help veterans discuss their goals of care with their care teams and learn how to discuss with their families and oncologist, and filing an advanced directive. Participants will be surveyed and interviewed at baseline and again at 8 months post-enrollment.
Location
- VA Palo AltoPalo Alto, California