Project ACCESS: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of a Navigator Delivered Model to Enhance Access to Supportive Services for Women of Color With Metastatic Breast Cancer
Summary
Black and Latina women experience disparities in supportive and palliative care access and outcomes. The goal of the proposed pilot study is to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of a community navigator delivered supportive care intervention for historically underserved populations of women with metastatic breast cancer.
Detailed description
Primary Objectives: 1. Establish the feasibility and acceptability of an adapted navigator delivered supportive care model called ACCESS to address supportive care needs for Black and Latina women with Metastatic Breast Cancer. 2. Determine the potential impact of ACCESS on cancer related distress, symptom burden, and utilization of supportive care services. OUTLINE: Participants (N=60) are randomized to 1 of 2 groups: GROUP 1/Intervention Group: Participants complete 6 individualized behavioral/educational sessions focused on social determinants of health and supportive care with a trained community navigator followed by monthly phone call check ins for 4 months. Participants complete questionnaires over the phone with a research coordinator at baseline, 6 and 9 months. GROUP 2/Attention Control group: Participants complete 6 phone calls with a research coordinator focused on supportive care resources followed by monthly phone call check ins for 4 months. Participants complete questionnaires over the phone with a research coordinator at baseline, 6 months and 9 months. .
Arms & interventions
- BehavioralACCESS Supportive Care
ACCESS Supportive Care includes: 1. Coaching sessions: 6 one-hour weekly Community Navigator led supportive and early palliative care health coaching sessions. Sessions will be hybrid (in-person or virtual) per participant preference. 2. Monthly check-in: Monthly check-ins (\~5-10 minutes) about their supportive care and social determinants of health needs over 16 weeks. 3. Scheduling of outpatient supportive oncology appointment if interested. 4. Community linkage: Warm hand offs and connection to community resources to enhance access to support groups, educational workshops, and healthy lifestyle services.
- BehavioralPhone sessions
6 weekly phone sessions, approximately 10 minutes in length each, to review breast cancer and supportive and palliative care resources in NYC and online. The 6 weekly phone sessions will include the topics discussed in the intervention arm but will be informational in nature. The phone sessions will be followed by monthly check-ins (\~5 minutes) to review and answer questions about the resources for the duration of 16 weeks.
Outcome measures
Primary
Number of participants recruited
Acceptability evaluates if patients accept the intervention through the ability to recruit 60 participants in 1.5 years and a \<20% dropout rate at 9 months
Time frame: at 9 months
Number of participants remaining in study
Acceptability evaluates if patients accept the intervention through a \<20% dropout rate at 9 months
Time frame: at 9 months
Number of times navigator communicates with oncology team
Integration evaluates if the navigator can communicate with the supportive oncology and medical oncology team at least 80% of the time.
Time frame: 9 months
Number of times participants connect to resources
Integration evaluates if at least 80% of patients can connect to community and clinical resources.
Time frame: 9 months
Number of visits
Practicality evaluates if the navigator is able to deliver the intervention in person or virtual. Successful practicality benchmarks include \> 80% of the visits conducted.
Time frame: 6 months
Number of phone calls
Practicality evaluates if the navigator is able to deliver the intervention in person or virtual. Successful practicality benchmarks include \>80% of follow up phone calls conducted.
Time frame: 9 months
Number of visits conducted according to the ACCESS manual
Fidelity: This is indicated if \>80% of the visits are conducted according to the ACCESS manual.
Time frame: 9 months
Change in The Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R) scores
Cancer-related distress will be measured through the Impact of Event Scale - Revised (IES-R) is a 22-item instrument to assess distress. Each item is scored 0-4, with full scale from 0-22. Higher scores indicate greater severity of symptoms related to distress. Efficacy assessed by mean differences at 9 months as compared to baseline.
Time frame: Baseline and 9 months
Change in The Memorial Symptom Assessment Scale (MSAS)
Symptom Burden will be measured through the Memorial Symptom Assessment (MSAS) is a 32 item instrument. Each item is scored from 0 to 4 with full scale from 0-128. A higher score indicates a greater level of symptom distress.
Time frame: Baseline and 9 months
Eligibility criteria
Study locations (1)
Mount Sinai Hospital
New York, New York, 10029