Impact of a psychoeducational intervention to improve caregiver knowledge and attitudes toward palliative cancer care
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study designs: Randomized Controlled Trial, Clinical Trial
Abstract: OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the efficacy of a psychoeducational intervention in improving palliative care knowledge and attitudes among caregivers, patients' close friends and families. METHODS: A total of 150 adult cancer caregivers participated in an online U.S.-based randomized clinical trial (RCT) between December 2021 and March 2022. Participants self-reported their baseline knowledge of palliative care, then viewed a psychoeducational video on palliative care (intervention condition) or nutrition (control condition). Participants then completed outcome measures of palliative care knowledge (aim 1; Palliative Care Knowledge Scale, PaCKS) and attitudes (aim 2; Palliative Care Attitudes Scale-9-Caregiver, PCAS-9C). Regression analyses examined whether group assignment significantly predicted palliative care knowledge and attitudes while controlling for self-reported baseline knowledge and key demographic and clinical characteristics. RESULTS: The PaCKS and PCAS-9C demonstrated excellent evidence of reliability, factor structure, and validity in this caregiver sample. The RCT succeeded on the primary outcome of increasing caregivers' palliative care knowledge (p < .001). Attitudes were favorable and did not differ between groups. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrates that a single-session, psychoeducational video can improve understanding of palliative care among close friends and families of those with cancer. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: This work suggests future pathways for helping families make informed decisions about initiating palliative care.
Source: Patient Education and Counseling
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,830
Awards: G1937633654, G4851757925, G629921037
OpenAlex ID: W4411079469