BETTER HEALTH: Durham
- Conditions
- Cancer and Chronic Disease Prevention
- Interventions
- Behavioral: Immediate InterventionOther: Wait List Intervention
- Registration Number
- NCT03052959
- Lead Sponsor
- Unity Health Toronto
- Brief Summary
The BETTER intervention consists of supportive meetings between a specially trained prevention practitioner nurse and individuals aged 40-64 years to review recommended chronic disease prevention and screening activities (CDPS). The prevention practitioner nurse will assist participants to identify goals for accomplishing CDPS activities in the next 6 months. Promotion, recruitment of participants and delivery of the BETTER intervention will be adapted to meet the needs of the residents through the use of participatory research methods and community engagement strategies. The study population consists of individuals aged 40-64 years living in 10 designated areas or "clusters" within Durham Region in Oshawa and Whitby.
Objectives:
1. Help people in the designated areas identify personal goals related to chronic disease prevention and screening activities.
2. Evaluate whether the prevention practitioner was effective in helping people achieve their goals and explore whether this type of intervention could work in other settings.
3. Share what the investigators learn with government and other public health units in Ontario and across Canada.
Some clusters will receive the BETTER intervention right away and other clusters will be in a wait-list control group to receive the intervention 6 months later. Our main outcome is the change in a score that considers the number of preventive health items a person has achieved during the 6 months. The investigators will also be doing in-depth interviews and focus groups with health care providers, community organizations and people who live in the designated areas to understand whether the primary practitioner was effective.
- Detailed Description
Research has shown that many Ontarians do not participate in all the chronic disease prevention and screening activities that could keep them healthy. Previous studies have found that a prevention practitioner, a nurse who works with health care providers and their practices, can be effective at improving the uptake of chronic disease prevention and screening activities.
The goal of this study is to adapt the BETTER intervention from a health care setting with family practice teams to a community-based strategy in designated areas in Durham Region. The BETTER intervention consists of supportive meetings between a specially trained prevention practitioner nurse and individuals aged 40-64 years to review recommended chronic disease prevention and screening activities (CDPS). The prevention practitioner nurse will assist participants to identify goals for accomplishing CDPS activities in the next 6 months. Promotion, recruitment of participants and delivery of the BETTER intervention will be adapted to meet the needs of the residents through the use of participatory research methods and community engagement strategies.
Previous work by the researchers identified census dissemination areas in Ontario with: (1) the lowest quintile of median household income, (2) low cancer screening rates, and 3) poor access to primary care services. The study population consists of individuals aged 40-64 years living in 10 designated areas or "clusters" within Durham Region in Oshawa and Whitby. The investigators will be working closely with local community agencies and primary care providers to identify people who may benefit from this study.
Objectives:
1. Help people in the designated areas identify personal goals related to chronic disease prevention and screening activities.
2. Evaluate whether the prevention practitioner was effective in helping people achieve their goals and explore whether this type of intervention could work in other settings.
3. Share what the investigators learn with government and other public health units in Ontario and across Canada.
Some clusters will receive the BETTER intervention right away and other clusters will be in a wait-list control group to receive the intervention 6 months later. The investigators will compare the two groups. The study will involve about 120 residents in 10 designated areas. Our main outcome is the change in a score that considers the number of preventive health items a person has achieved during the 6 months. The investigators will also be doing in-depth interviews and focus groups with health care providers, community organizations and people who live in the designated areas to understand whether the primary practitioner was effective.
Recruitment & Eligibility
- Status
- COMPLETED
- Sex
- All
- Target Recruitment
- 126
- Males and females aged 40 - 64 years living in sampled low income clusters in Durham region who are English speakers (including illiterate persons). Only one participant per residential household may participate.
- Unable to provide informed consent
Study & Design
- Study Type
- INTERVENTIONAL
- Study Design
- PARALLEL
- Arm && Interventions
Group Intervention Description Immediate Intervention Immediate Intervention - Wait List Intervention Wait List Intervention -
- Primary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method Composite Outcome Measure: Mean Percentage of CDPS Actions at Baseline That Are Subsequently Met at Follow-up Six months The primary outcome measure is the mean percentage of the number of eligible CDPS actions at baseline that are subsequently met (by self-report) at follow-up, measured at the patient level. As a function of baseline characteristics, certain individuals are eligible for certain CDPS actions. At follow-up, each patient will be re-evaluated and the number of eligible actions met will be enumerated. Six months after the baseline survey interview, the research assistant will administer the outcome survey on health and CDPS actions to participants in intervention and control clusters alike. All outcomes are self-reports of the completion of CDPS actions.
- Secondary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method Number of Self-referrals Six months The investigators will report the frequency with which self-referrals were reported to the prevention practitioner.
Completion of Individual Actions Six months The investigators will report the frequency with which individual CDPS actions were completed, for those actions for which the individual was eligible at baseline
Trial Locations
- Locations (1)
Durham Region Health Department
🇨🇦Whitby, Ontario, Canada