Introduction
Materials and methods of the trial
Eligibility
Study design, randomisation and ethics
Study interventions
Assessment battery
Feasibility, acceptability, and tolerability evaluation framework
Feasibility of the study procedures
Acceptability of the intervention
Tolerability of the intervention
Intervention fidelity (delivery, receipt and enactment)
Qualitative investigation
Sample size
Data analysis
Results
Feasibility of the study procedures
Component being evaluated and operationalized definition | A priori standard for acceptance (A), modification (M) or rejection (R) | Data source (how and when) | Descriptive outcome | Conclusion Accept/modify/reject |
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Feasibility of the trial design and study procedures | ||||
Overall trial design To assess adherence to trial procedures | Feasibility will be demonstrated if the reported protocol deviations are not unethical, do not compromise data integrity and can be controlled in a future trial | Participant flow loga | The majority of protocol deviations were related to delays in scheduling the home visits. The delays extended the trial duration for some participant-dyads Control = 15 weeks, 5 days Experimental = 18 weeks, 1 day | Modify |
Eligibility rate To estimate the number of eligible participant-dyads entering the study | A: >15%A M: ≥10% R: <10% | Participant flow loga | 200 participants were referred to the study, of these 76 entered the study. Thus eligibility rate was 38% | Accept |
Recruitment rate To estimate the number of participant-dyads who can be recruited per site per month | A: > 2 dyads per month over 6 month periodA M: ≥ 1 dyad per month over 6 month period R: < 1 dyad for two consecutive months | Participant flow loga | 1 dyad per month (actual – 0.9 dyads per site per month over 6 month period) | Modify |
Randomisation To estimate the number of dyads accepting recruitment allocation | A: > 95% acceptanceA M: ≥ 90% R: < 90% | Participant flow loga | All participant-dyads accepted their allocated arm | Accept |
Retention rate To estimate the number of dyads lost to follow up after entering the trial | A: > 70%A M: ≥ 60% R: < 60% | Participant flow loga | The retention rate was 73.7% (20 out of 76) participant-dyads were not followed up. Of the 20 participant-dyads not followed up, 70% (14 participant-dyads) were in the experimental arm and 30% (6 participant-dyads in the control arm | Accept |
Blinding procedures To estimate the percentage of ‘un-blinding’ incidents reported by assessors | A: < 10% incidents of un-blinding reported M: ≤ 15% incidents of un-blinding reported R: > 15% incidents of un-blinding reported | Field notesa | There were no reports of un-blinding at any of the 7 sites | Accept |
Data collection To assess the feasibility of outcomes assessments by participant-dyads and assessors | Feasibility demonstrated if outcome measures assessments can be administered within 120 min ± 10% (as per ethical approval) and level of complete data > 80% | Assessor record formc Summary statisticsh | Average time to complete assessment battery: 122.4 min (SD = 23.0 min, range 76–150 min) Missing outcome scale data for trial completers were minimal and met the a priori threshold for acceptability, with all scales having over 83% complete data | Accept |
Usability of participant diaries To assess the feasibility of using a field diary to record therapy experiences | A: Feasibility demonstrated if the diaries from > 95% of therapy completers are returned to the study team, > 40% completed M: Partial feasibility demonstrated if ≥ 85% of all diaries are returned to the study team, > 40% completed R: Feasibility not demonstrated if < 85% of diaries are not returned to the study team, and/or < 40% completed | Therapy diarye | Diaries were returned for 91.7% of completers (22/24 participant-dyads) in the experimental arm. Participant-dyads recorded diary entries for all completed therapy sessions | Accept |
Intervention fidelity | ||||
Delivery To assess the feasibility of researchers delivering the therapy training as per the protocol guidelines To assess the feasibility of care partners delivering the therapy to participants with Parkinson’s-related dementia | A: Fidelity demonstrated if > 95% of assessors complete the activities on the protocol check-list M: Partial fidelity demonstrated if ≥ 75% of assessors complete the activities on the protocol check-list R: Fidelity not demonstrated if < 75% of assessors do not complete the activities of the protocol check-list Feasibility demonstrated if the majority of care partners report that they delivered the therapy in accordance with the key therapy principles | Researcher check-listd Semi-structured interviewsg | 77.8% of assessors completed the check-list at three sampled sites. From the check-list, 82.1% of assessors delivered the therapy training as intended, the remainder could not complete a role-play exercise with the study partner due to lack of time Some care partners reported difficulty in delivering the therapy to their partner and rarely revisiting the key therapy principles outlined in the therapy manual | Modify Modify |
Receipt To assess the feasibility of care partners receiving the therapy training in the manner intended To assess the feasibility of participants with Parkinson’s-related dementia receiving CST-PD as intended (see Acceptability components below) | A: Fidelity demonstrated if > 95% of care partners rate their skills (post-training) > 3 M: Partial fidelity demonstrated if ≥ 75% of participants rate their skills (post-training) as > 3 R: Fidelity not demonstrated if < 75% of participants rate their skills (post-training) as > 3 See acceptability component below as a proxy measure of receipt of CST-PD by participants with Parkinson’s-related dementia | Therapy skills self-assessmentd | 95.6% of care partners rated their skills (post-training) as ≥ 3 | Accept |
Enactment To estimate the number of therapy sessions completed | A: Fidelity demonstrated if > 95% of participants complete 11 sessions of 20 min or longer M: Partial feasibility demonstrated if ≥ 75% of participants complete 11 sessions of 20 min or longer R: Fidelity not demonstrated if < 75% of participants do not complete 11 sessions of 20 min or longer | Therapy diarye | 64% of participants completed 11 sessions or more over the 10-week intervention period. 92% of participant-dyads completed sessions of greater than 20 min. Additional strategies will be required to boost the number of sessions completed | Modify |
Acceptability, tolerability and feasibility (from the participant-dyad’s perspective) of the intervention | ||||
Acceptability To assess study care partners’ perceptions of the extent to which (in each session) their partner was: interested, motivated and gained a sense of achievement | A: Acceptability demonstrated if > 95% of care partners rated each element 3 or more M: Partial acceptability demonstrated if ≥ 75% of care partners rated each element 3 or more R: Acceptability not demonstrated if < 75% of care partners do not rate each element 3 more | Therapy diarye | Partner was interested: 100% rated > 3 (64% rated > 4) Partner was motivated: 100% rated > 3 (60% rated it > 4) Partner gained a sense of achievement: 96% >3 (40% greater than 4) | Accept |
Tolerability To estimate the number of serious adverse events related to the trial | A: Feasibility demonstrated if any serious adverse events reported are not related to tolerability of the interventionA | Participant flowa log, field notesa | No serious adverse events reported to the study team were related to the trial | Accept |
Feasibility To assess the feasibility of delivering the intervention in a way that is acceptable to people with Parkinson’s-related dementia and their care partners | Feasibility demonstrated if the majority of participant-dyads indicate that the therapy is acceptable, usable and tolerable | Semi-structured interviews with 11 participant-dyads who undertook the therapyg | Most participants found the CST-PD enjoyable, usable, stimulating and versatile, confirming the acceptability and tolerability of the therapy (see Table 3). However, a number of barriers were identified, such as lack of time to deliver the intervention, poor communication skills and disease-related aspects preventing the dyad from engaging in therapy sessions | Modify |
Recruitment/randomisation
Categorical variables | People with Parkinson’s-related dementia (n = 38) | Care partners (n = 38) | ||||||
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Control | Intervention | Control | Intervention | |||||
n
| % |
n
| % |
n
| % |
n
| % | |
Gender | ||||||||
Female | 8 | 12.05 | 8 | 21.05 | 35 | 92.11 | 33 | 86.84 |
Male | 30 | 78.95 | 30 | 78.95 | 3 | 7.89 | 5 | 13.16 |
Ethnicity | ||||||||
White | 35 | 92.11 | 36 | 94.74 | 35 | 92.11 | 35 | 92.11 |
Non-White | 2 | 5.26 | 2 | 5.26 | 2 | 5.26 | 3 | 7.89 |
Did not specify | 1 | 2.63 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 | 2.36 | 0 | 0.00 |
Education level | ||||||||
Up to 18 year old schooling | 22 | 57.89 | 18 | 47.37 | 20 | 52.63 | 17 | 44.74 |
Further education and higher | 16 | 42.11 | 20 | 52.63 | 18 | 47.37 | 21 | 55.26 |
Marital status | ||||||||
Single | 6 | 15.79 | 6 | 15.79 | 7 | 18.42 | 6 | 15.79 |
Married/partnership | 32 | 84.21 | 32 | 84.21 | 31 | 81.58 | 32 | 84.21 |
Living status | ||||||||
Alone | 5 | 13.16 | 1 | 2.63 | 2 | 5.26 | 0 | 0.00 |
With others | 33 | 86.84 | 37 | 97.37 | 36 | 94.74 | 38 | 100.00 |
Diagnosis | ||||||||
PD-MCI | 8 | 21.05 | 7 | 18.42 | ||||
PDD | 18 | 47.37 | 22 | 57.89 | ||||
DLB | 12 | 31.58 | 9 | 23.68 | ||||
Dyad relationship | ||||||||
Spouse/partner | 28 | 73.68 | 31 | 81.58 | ||||
Son/daughter | 9 | 23.68 | 4 | 10.53 | ||||
Other | 1 | 2.63 | 3 | 7.89 | ||||
Caregiving weekly hours (up to an average of) | ||||||||
1 h per day | 10 | 26.32 | 5 | 13.16 | ||||
8 h per day | 9 | 23.68 | 13 | 34.21 | ||||
24 h a day | 19 | 50.00 | 20 | 52.63 |
Continuous variables |
n
| Median; IQR [range] |
n
| Median; IQR [range] |
n
| Median; IQR [range] |
n
| Median; IQR [range] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Age | 38 | 75; 72–81 [61–90] | 38 | 74.50; 68–77 [55–84] | 38 | 68.50; 59–72 [43–85] | 38 | 67; 59–71 [21–88] |
Dyad known years | 29 | 50; 43–56 [3–68] | 34 | 46; 30–52 [0.5–70] | ||||
Caregiving years | 38 | 2.50; 1–6 [0–15] | 38 | 3.25; 1.5–8 [0–20] | ||||
Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) | 35 | 19; 15–22 [7–24] | 36 | 17.5; 15–21.5 [8–30] | ||||
Schwab-England score | 37 | 60; 35–80 [10–100] | 37 | 60; 30–70 [10–90] | ||||
UPDRS motor score | 38 | 34; 17.50–40.25 [9–69] | 37 | 24; 18–38 [8–58] | ||||
Duration of clinical symptoms, years | 38 | 5.5; 2–10 [0–33] | 38 | 4; 2–10.50 [0.5–24] |
Eligibility criteria
Retention
Study design
Blinding
Feasibility of outcome measures
“It would have been useful to have had more room for feedback on the diary, yes, um, ‘cause I’d sort of squashed quite a lot in there.” [Care partner, CS17].
Acceptability of the intervention
“[name] chose an article he had read in an aeroplane magazine and showed much more interest and enthusiasm in. It is a subject dear to his heart.” [Care partner, CS17].
Tolerability of the intervention
Intervention for TAU completers
Intervention fidelity
Delivery and receipt of therapy training
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[name] took more interest in the subject today and it was less like ‘pulling teeth’. [...] He seemed to enjoy the whole session more today. [Care partner, CS17].
-
Have we done it right? I felt sometimes that maybe I was the problem. Maybe I wasn’t approaching this right and I wasn’t getting the best out of [him]. [Care partner, CS4].
-
You’d come to the question and you’d say, “Well, I’ve already said that”, so what else can I say? [Participant with PRD, CS5].
Enactment
-
“A barrier for you, dad, would have been two things. One that you wanted to do the session but I wasn’t here to do one, so lack of availability of me, and second your health because your health varies so much day to day.” [Care partner, CS9].
Qualitative findings
Theme | Quote from diary or interview |
---|---|
New opportunities | I think when she said we’ll do it wherever in the week, so, I was pleased about that. [Participant with PRD, CS6, interview] |
“When it was about topics that we were familiar with, you certainly were stimulated and excited to take part, dad, and afterwards you would be tired because you’ve been active for that time.” [Care partner, CS9, interview] | |
It took a lot of pressure off us, for, you know, in as much as it gave us a fresh thing to focus on. [Care partner, CS9, interview] | |
Sometimes we were enjoying ourselves that much it got to 45 min. [Care partner, CS5, interview] | |
Time spent doing something useful. [Care partner, CS15, diary] | |
It’s been great and to say it’s, um, it deals with memories and things that I’ve forgotten about. [Participant with PRD, CS12, interview] | |
As well as me doing it and [wife], um, family and friends have asked what we’re doing and it’s, an interest, so we’ve, it gives us a chance to discuss and raise awareness. That, that’s a big benefit already, plus the fact that, um, I, I firmly believe exercise is, is the key, both physical and mental, I don’t do either of them enough so, you know. So, anything that comes along to my doorstep is brilliant, that’s another good plus. [Participant with PRD, CS12, interview] | |
Interest/enjoyment | And there’s so much choice. There’s so much choice looking through the book, you know, it really is, it’s quite fun deciding, “well, we’ll do this” or whatever, you know. [Care partner, CS12, interview] |
I loved the book. I think it’s lovely, I think everybody should have one. [Care partner, CS12, interview] | |
It was very attractively presented I thought. The layout, was, was quite, was quite good. […] They’re all kind of like easy to look at and to follow. [Participant with PRD, CS17, interview] | |
I must admit I’ve tended to go for things with pictures rather than too many [words]. […] The pictures are so, oh they’re so nice. This one, “look at this.” [Care partner, CS11, interview] | |
To recall some of the things we went through together, as children, as teenagers what have you, I enjoyed it. [Participant with PRD, CS9, interview] | |
We really enjoyed, you know, we enjoyed playing games together. [Care partner, CS12, interview] | |
Mastery | Found it easy [Care partner, CS5, diary] |
As he has travelled considerably he was able to talk about this topic very well. [Care partner, CS1, diary] | |
He seemed to enjoy the whole session more today. [Care partner, CS17, diary] | |
Some of the questions […] did require more thought. [Participant with PRD, CS17, interview] | |
Some of my childhood and things that had gone past, you forgotten all of that you’re only assisted, until we sat down in here and we went through the sort of headlines and it was fantastic to thread those paths again and then I can compare with other people’s experiences. [Participant with PRD, CS9, interview] | |
Lack of time/availability | 3 times a week that was enough, well for us it was enough because we had other things going on in our lives. [Care partner, CS9, interview] |
I think our only barriers were if you weren’t well or I’ve been busy. [Care partner, CS9, interview] | |
Well time was the barrier and that I don’t necessary want to do more, one, I think we are more joined at the hip than we would want to be anyway so actually more intensive therapy is the last thing I want whereas when we’re in a group the dynamics is very different. [Care partner, CS5, interview] | |
I think, the ones [activities] that we got into there wasn’t enough time. [Participant with PRD, CS5, interview] | |
Timing was wrong for me as I was in the middle of something. [Care partner, CS4, diary] | |
Feeling under pressure due to time constraints. [Care partner, CS3, diary] | |
Challenges in delivering CST-PD (discourse) | I probably didn’t like some of the wording in the, and I can’t even pick anything specific. I struggled a bit with some of them and I’d look and think hmmm, it felt a bit stilted with the questions. [Care partner, CS6, interview] |
I wanted to get a discussion going and it didn’t come out as a discussion, it was more questioning and [him] answering. [Care partner, CS17, interview] | |
Have we done it right? I felt sometimes that maybe I was the problem. Maybe I wasn’t approaching this right and I wasn’t getting the best out of [him]. [Care partner, CS4, interview] | |
You’d come to the question and you’d say, “Well, I’ve already said that”, so what else can I say? [Participant with PRD, CS5, interview] | |
I’m thinking ‘if this is supposed to last 30 min there was no way it could have lasted that long’ […] [the topic] was quite, erm, quite a short one and I’m thinking well how can you flesh that out? [Care partner, CS6, interview] | |
I struggled on this topic as I was not familiar with all the seven wonders. […] I was not able to give him the support he needed. [Care partner, CS6, diary] | |
Trying to make it last 30 min! [Care partner, CS3, diary] | |
Didn’t have much to discuss because of our lack of knowledge. [Care partner, CS5, diary] | |
Thought he was back at school, didn’t like this. [Care partner, CS8, diary] | |
Just thought it was boring. [Care partner, CS8, diary] | |
Challenges in delivering CST-PD (managing disease symptoms) | Sometimes I said, I was fine to do it but I know he wouldn’t because he was tired […] so it is difficult, more than you think. At the beginning I thought “3 sessions that’s going to be easy” towards the end it was getting to two. But then I thought we’d rather have two good sessions rather than fitting it in for the sake of it. [Care partner, CS14, interview] |
Took 35/40 min, needs condensing, [he] became restless. [Care partner, CS7, diary] | |
We had to stop because [name] was “out of it” - not really well, hence only one session this week. [Care partner, CS11, diary] | |
[name]’s apparent early loss of interest. [Care partner, CS10, diary] | |
It highlighted how [name] needs a strong regular interest in a topic to be truly engaged. [Care partner, CS16, diary] | |
Needed prompting at times, didn’t take the lead role! [Care partner, CS14, diary] | |
[name] took more interest in the subject today and it was less like “pulling teeth”. [Care partner, CS17, diary] | |
There were a lot of components to this question, he got tired after the first page. [Care partner, CS2, interview] | |
It was quite difficult for the person I look after to understand the task. [Care partner, CS3, diary] | |
I think it did become tired, didn’t it, you know, um, there were occasions where we said, well, I think we’ve done enough for today, I think let’s finish it off tomorrow. [Participant with PRD, CS17, interview] | |
C: Perhaps you get a bit tired. P: Weary. C: Well, it wasn’t […] the project’s fault, it was just us not getting the balance quite right. [Participant with PRD and Care partner, CS5, interview] |
Discussion
“Some of my childhood and things that had gone past, you forgotten all of that you’re only assisted, until we sat down in here and we went through the sort of headlines and it was fantastic to thread those paths again and then I can compare with other people’s experiences. [Participant with PRD, CS9].