Carer Stress Syndrome
Conditions
Keywords
Carers of People with Multiple Sclerosis, Carer Strain, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy
Brief summary
This is a feasibility study to evaluate whether it is possible to conduct a larger study to evaluate whether providing psychological support to carers of people with MS is effective in reducing carer strain. Whilst not all carers experience distress as a result of their caring duties, some do. This study is testing the use of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) in a self-help format. Participants will learn about and use ACT by reading a book provided to them by the study. One group will receive the ACT book, another will receive the same book alongside weekly telephone support to use the book, and a third group will act as a control group and therefore will not have extra support. Participants are allocated to the groups based on chance (a computer will decide group allocation). Participants will complete questionnaires before group allocation, and then again 3 months after they were allocated to a group, and one final time 6 months after group allocation. Those who receive the self-help book will get sent chapters each week for 8 weeks. The groups will be compared on scores from the questionnaires and complete feedback interviews with a subgroup of those who receive the book, to gain feedback about their experiences of the study.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALACT Self-Help
Self-Help Intervention Workbook using an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy approach
BEHAVIORALACT Self-Help with Telephone Support
Self-Help Intervention Workbook using an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy approach alongside weekly telephone support calls
Sponsors
University of Nottingham
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* primary carer for a person with MS, * English speaking (intervention and assessments are in English), * able to give informed consent. * score at least 21 on the Zarit Burden Interview (demonstrating a minimum of mild distress)
Exclusion criteria
* diagnosis of MS themselves * psychiatric diagnosis * inability to commit to the intervention
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ZBI | 3 months | Zarit Burden Interview as a measure of carer strain |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| ZBI | 6 months | Zarit Burden Interview as a measure of carer strain |
| MCSI | 3 months, 6 months | Modified Carer Strain Index as a measure of carer strain |
| CAREQOL-MS | 3 months, 6 months | CAREQOL- MS is a health-related quality of life scale designed for carers of people with MS |
| CompACT | 3 months, 6 months | The Comprehensive Assessment of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy measures important processes of ACT |
| Service Use Questionnaire | 3 months, 6 months | The service use questionnaire will measure the frequency in which participants access health and social care services |
| AAQ-II | 3 months, 6 months | The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire is a measure of experiential avoidance and psychological inflexibility, consistent with the ACT model |
Other
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Feedback Interviews | 3 months | A selection of those in the two intervention groups will be invited to complete an interview to give feedback about the intervention |
Countries
United Kingdom
Outcome results
None listed