None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Study RCT of Meaning & Purpose Therapy in advanced cancer The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of the ‘Meaning and Purpose Therapy’ (MaPT) program in promoting psychological wellbeing and lessening psychological distress. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are aged 18 or over and have advanced cancer (of any type) with a prognosis of 2 years or less. Study details Participants will be randomised (by chance) into one of two groups. One group will continue their usual cancer care. The other group will undergo six sessions of counselling in the form of Meaning and Purpose Therapy with a mental health clinician in addition to their usual care. Each session will last for an hour and sessions will be conducted once per week. All participants will complete a number of questionnaires, firstly at the beginning of the study, then after 6 weeks (or on completion of the intervention) and finally 12 weeks later. It is hoped this research will improve wellbeing by helping participants to better appreciate life, including new possibilities, choices and goals, better morale and overall improvement in their quality of life.
Interventions
6 x 1-hour weekly sessions of the manualised Meaning and Purpose Therapy delivered by a mental health clinician in the clinic in face to face sessions in addition to usual care. The counselling seeks to understand who each person is, review sources of meaning, potential directions with new goals, the meaning that can be derived from relating to others, any new priorities, choices or ways of appreciating life, so that life is lived with renewed purpose, commitment and value. The mental health cli
6 x 1-hour weekly sessions of the manualised Meaning and Purpose Therapy delivered by a mental health clinician in the clinic in face to face sessions in addition to usual care. The counselling seeks to understand who each person is, review sources of meaning, potential directions with new goals, the meaning that can be derived from relating to others, any new priorities, choices or ways of appreciating life, so that life is lived with renewed purpose, commitment and value. The mental health clinician could be a psychologist, social worker or psychiatrist who has been specifically trained to deliver this model of therapy. Sessions are audio-recorded so that the clinician's adherence to the intervention can be checked for fidelity to the manualised model of intervention. No physical material is used in this study. The mental health clinician delivering the intervention will provide homework sheets to the patient at the conclusion of each session to guide the patient's preparation for the next session. Clinician's will monitor attendance on a study checklist.
Sponsors
University of Notre Dame Australia
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Educational / counselling / training
Masking
Blinded (masking used) (Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
• aged 18 years or older; No upper age limit • advanced cancer with a prognosis of 2 years or less; • Distress Thermometer score greater tan or equal to 4 • fluent in spoken and written English; and • ability to give written informed consent • willingness to participate in and comply with the study.
Exclusion criteria
• known cognitive impairment that would interfere with participation; • too unwell or frail (e.g., impairment associated with co-morbid conditions) to participate as determined by treating clinicians.
Outcome results
None listed