An Evaluation of a Group Intervention for Caregivers of Individuals with Bipolar Disorder

For caregivers of people with bipolar disorder, does group psychoeducation, compared to waitlist control, reduce perceived burden and symptoms of emotional disorder?

Status

Completed

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12615000184572

Enrollment

Registered

2015-02-25

Start date

2015-04-10

Completion date

2015-08-17

Last updated

2020-01-13

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

Psychoeducation provided to individuals with bipolar disorder and their caregiver has strong research support but to date no studies have investigated the impact of providing psychoeducation to caregivers alone. This study aims to contribute towards filling this gap by evaluating a two-session group intervention for caregivers of individuals with bipolar disorder focussing on improving knowledge of the disorder and the development of self-care strategies. Participants will be randomised to either a waitlist control condition or intervention condition. Repeated measures of stress, depression, anxiety, self-efficacy, knowledge and burden will be taken at pre, post, and follow-up intervals. It is hypothesised that participants will report reduced symptoms of stress, depression, anxiety and burden at post intervention and follow-up, as well as improved knowledge and self efficacy, relative to controls. Those in the control condition will be offered the intervention immediately after the waitlist period.

Interventions

The intervention requires eligible participants attend two, 150-minute group psychoeducation sessions spaced one week apart. Participants will be provided with educational information about bipolar disorder, its treatment and coping strategies for themselves as a caregiver of someone with bipolar disorder. Sessions will be audiorecorded and adherence to protocol by the facilitators will be assessed by independent raters.

Study design

Allocation

Randomised controlled trial

Intervention model

Parallel

Primary purpose

Educational / counselling / training

Masking

Open (masking not used)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to No maximum

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria for participation in this study will be: 1) aged over 18 years; 2) the ability to speak and read English fluently, 3) a caregiver of someone with diagnosed bipolar disorder, defined as a friend, family member or partner.

Exclusion criteria

Aged under 18 years Inability to speak and read English fluently Not being a caregiver (friend, family, partner) of someone with bipolar disorder Caregiver is a currently receiving therapy related to supporting the individual with bipolar disorder.

Outcome results