None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
The purpose of this study is to test out an engagement strategy called Making it Meaningful (MiM). The MiM has been designed for people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds who use cancer services and may be undergoing a change in their medications. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are a cancer patient aged 18 or older, who is attending a cancer service at the Prince of Wales hospital and your primary language is Russian or Mandarin. Study details Participants who choose to enrol in this study will be randomly allocated by chance (similar to flipping a coin) to either receive the MiM intervention tool, or to receive standard care provided by the cancer service. Participants who are allocated to the MiM group will attend an appointment with their health practitioner (nurse or medical practitioner) who will use the Make it Meaningful Tool (MiM) to facilitate communication at the individual appointment where medications are changed or at discharge from hospital. It is anticipated that this appointment will take no longer than your usual consultation. The health care practitioner will provide a paper copy of the MiM for the patient to take away from the appointment. The health care practitioner will also provide instructions to the patient about how the tool can be used to inform them of who to contact if they have any concerns or experience side effects, etc.. Participants who are allocated to the standard care group will not receive the MiM tool, they will instead discuss the new medications together with their health care practitioner using the existing medication management tool. All participants will be asked to complete a series of questionnaires over the phone when they first agree to participate in the study, 1 week and then 4 weeks after the medication discussion with their health care practitioner. It is expected that completion of these questionnaires will take 15 minutes. It is hoped this research will determine that use of the MiM tool is practical and acceptable to cancer patients who are from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. If this small study shows that the MiM tool is helpful for cancer patients, it may be studied further in a larger trial that may lead to improvements in medication communication for cancer patients in the future
Interventions
The Making it Meaningful (MiM) Intervention
Making it Meaningful (MiM) is a co-designed paper-based medication management tool that aims to increase patient and family member’s ability to make contact with healthcare staff between appointments and following hospital discharge in order to raise concerns about their medications. The co-design process was conducted with staff and patients from the study site in late 2021.
The MiM is an adaptation of an existing medication management tool used in
The Making it Meaningful (MiM) Intervention Making it Meaningful (MiM) is a co-designed paper-based medication management tool that aims to increase patient and family member’s ability to make contact with healthcare staff between appointments and following hospital discharge in order to raise concerns about their medications. The co-design process was conducted with staff and patients from the study site in late 2021. The MiM is an adaptation of an existing medication management tool used in NSW cancer services that provides translated information about medication side effects, in plain language and using images in order to meet the needs of populations with low English language proficiency. The MIM provides clear information about common side effects tailored for the individual patient and who to contact, including contact details if certain side effects or concerns arise when the patient is not at the health service. Participants will be randomly allocated to the intervention or control group. Participants in the intervention group will attend their usual hospital or clinic consultation or appointment. The health practitioner (nurse or medical practitioner) will use Make it Meaningful Tool (MIM) to facilitate communication at the individual appointment where medications are changed or at discharge from hospital. We do not anticipate that using the MIM will add any additional time to existing appointments. The health care practitioner will provide a paper copy of the MiM for the patient to take away from the appointment to inform the patient of appropriate contacts if concerns or side effects arise.
Sponsors
Macquarie University
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Inpatients and outpatients who are receiving treatment or care at participating cancer service and aged over 18 years will be eligible to take part. Through the co-design process to develop MiM, the participating service identified that people from Russian or Mandarin-speaking populations are those who commonly attend the participating service with low English language proficiency. These two language groups are therefore targeted in this pilot study. Patients who attend the service must identify their primary language as Russian or Mandarin to be eligible to participate.
Exclusion criteria
none
Outcome results
None listed