Evaluating a Mobile Health App to Support Family Caregivers Providing Home Palliative Care Using a Randomized Approach

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating a mobile health application designed for family caregivers of patients receiving home palliative care. This randomized controlled trial aims to assess how this app affects caregiver competence, burden, self-efficacy, and patient outcomes such as symptom burden, emergency visits, and hospitalizations. The study recognizes the challenges caregivers face in providing daily care and managing complex needs, seeking to support them through digital tools. Participants will be randomly assigned to either use the mobile health application alongside usual home palliative care for six weeks or to receive usual care alone without access to the app. The application offers educational content on symptom management, medication, nutrition, hygiene, pressure injury prevention, caregiver self-care, stress management, problem-solving, and healthcare decision-making. Usage data will be collected to track adherence during the intervention period. Participants will be evaluated at three timepoints before the intervention begins, immediately after six weeks of app use, and at an 18-week follow-up. Assessments include caregiver competence, burden, self-efficacy, patient symptom burden, and records of emergency department visits and hospitalizations. The study intends to provide important information about the effectiveness of mobile health support for caregivers in home palliative care settings.

Mobile Health Application for Family Caregivers in Home Palliative Care