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Tools to Improve Discharge Equity (TIDE) Pilot RCT

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Hospital Discharge
Interventions
Other: Toolkit to improve discharge equity
Registration Number
NCT05988229
Lead Sponsor
Boston Medical Center
Brief Summary

The investigators will test the impact of a package of linguistically appropriate discharge teaching tools against current standard of care for patients with Limited English proficiency (LEP) in an unblinded randomized controlled trial. The tools include an expanded medication calendar in English and the patients' preferred language, pictographics to illustrate return precautions (what signs/symptoms require further evaluation), an audio recording of the nurse reviewing the After Visit Summary (composed by providers) to allow for review by patients and caretakers after discharge.

The investigators will evaluate the effectiveness of the package of discharge teaching tools on patients' understanding/recall, key implementation outcomes, and secondary clinical outcomes via a structured interview 1-2 weeks after discharge and chart review 30 days after discharge.

The objectives of this research study are:

1. test the effectiveness of a linguistically appropriate toolkit for improving patient understanding of discharge instruction content

2. Assess the feasibility and fidelity of the intervention in anticipation of a multi-site implementation trial

3. assess the feasibility and appropriateness of the linguistically appropriate toolkit to nurses and in-person interpreters

4. to assess the acceptability of the intervention to patients and their satisfaction with it

5. to collect data on implementation context in anticipation for a multi-site trial

6. to collect preliminary data on the toolkit's impact on clinical outcomes including medication adherence and hospital re-utilization.

Detailed Description

Not available

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
104
Inclusion Criteria

Patients

  • Labeled in medical record as preferring one of the following four languages: Spanish, Haitian Creole, Cape Verdean Creole, or Vietnamese
  • Admitted to medicine team at BMC
  • Age 18 years or older
  • Being discharged home (to the community)
  • Admitted to Boston Medical Center (BMC) hospital units (Menino 7 East, 7 West, and Menino Observation)

Nurses and Interpreters

  • Caring for patient enrolled in trial

Family/Visitors

  • Present at time of discharge for patient enrolled in trial
Exclusion Criteria

Patients

  • On airborne infections precautions
  • On clostridium difficile (C diff) precautions
  • On suicide precautions
  • Nurse report of participant displaying cognitive impairment, delirium, or aggression
  • Enrolled in trial during a prior admission

Nurses and Interpreters

  • None

Family/Visitors

  • None

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Discharge equity toolsToolkit to improve discharge equityParticipants randomized into this arn will receive the toolkit of linguistically appropriate discharge teaching aids at hospital discharge.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Patient understanding of primary diagnosis of hospitalization1-2 weeks post discharge

Determined by two physician adjudicators (1=poor, 4 = near perfect). Higher scores demonstrate better understanding.

Patient understanding of discharge instructions1-2 weeks post discharge

Assessed by a composite score of six key domains of discharge instructions (primary diagnosis, self-care instructions, return precautions, medication changes, medication indications, follow-up) as determined by two physician adjudicators (1=poor, 4 = near perfect). Higher scores demonstrate better understanding.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Implementation effectiveness18 months

Effectiveness will be assessed by observations of and comments from patients, nurses and visitors from qualitative interviews related to the adoption, acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of the discharge process

Hospital re-utilization30 days

Assessed by a combined outcome of admission or emergency department (ED) visit within 30 days of index discharge

Number of participants with completion of primary care follow-up30 days

Assessed from participants' medical records

Participant participation in discharge teaching1-2 weeks

Participants are observed by a research team member during discharge teaching and will document the number of questions asked.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

Boston Medical Center

🇺🇸

Boston, Massachusetts, United States

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