Recruiting and Retaining Dyads of Hospitalized Persons with Dementia and Family Caregivers

Oropharyngeal Dysphagia in Hospitalized Older Adults with Dementia: A Prospective Cohort Study

OBJECTIVE

Oropharyngeal dysphagia (dysphagia) is highly prevalent (up to 86%) in hospitalized patients with Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD). This study aims to describe the management and clinical course of dysphagia in hospitalized patients with ADRD.

DESIGN

Prospective observational cohort study.

SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS

The study was conducted across 10 hospitals within a large health system in New York. Participants were older adults with ADRD admitted to the medicine service and diagnosed with dysphagia to liquids on speech-language pathologist (SLP) assessment and were recruited between January and June 2023.

METHODS

Baseline characteristics [eg, dementia Functional Assessment Staging Tool (FAST)], dysphagia management (eg, prescribed diet), and clinical course (eg, dysphagia improvement, respiratory complications) were collected.

RESULTS

Of patients with ADRD and dysphagia (n = 62), the average age was 86.5 and 66.1% were FAST Stage 7. On admission, 48.4% had pneumonia, 79.0% had delirium, and 69.4% were made nil per os (NPO) for aspiration risk. Of those who received SLP reassessment after diet initiation (n = 25), 76% demonstrated dysphagia improvement; 75% of patients with FAST stage 7 demonstrated improvement. Respiratory complications occurred in 21.0% of patients on the following diets: NPO, nasogastric tube feeding, dysphagia diets, and comfort feeds. In univariate analyses, hospital-acquired dehydration, no dysphagia improvement, and delirium were associated with respiratory complications.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

The potential for dysphagia improvement in hospitalized patients with ADRD (even those with advanced dementia) highlights the critical need for standardizing reassessment. Further studies are needed to evaluate factors associated with respiratory complications in this population.

Comparing emergency department versus high school-based recruitment for a hypertension research study with adult-youth dyads

Dyads can be challenging to recruit for research studies, but detailed reporting on strategies employed to recruit adult-adolescent dyads is rare. We describe experiences recruiting adult-youth dyads for a hypertension education intervention comparing recruitment in an emergency department (ED) setting with a school-based community setting. We found more success in recruiting dyads through a school-based model that started with adolescent youth (19 dyads in 7 weeks with < 1 hour recruitment) compared to an ED-based model that started with adults (2 dyads in 17 weeks with 350 hours of recruitment). These findings can benefit future adult-youth dyad recruitment for research studies.

Recruitment, retention, and adherence of family caregivers: Lessons from a multisite trial

Objective

To describe the recruitment, retention of family caregivers, and adherence to a telephone based intervention evaluated in a multi-site trial and provide recommendations for the design of future studies.

Methods

A descriptive study based on a secondary analysis of a multi-site clinical development in Colombia and Brazil. Recruitment was measured by the number of participants eligible and consented. Retention was assessed by the percentage of participants with outcomes data at two follow-ups. The intervention adherence was measured by the percentage of the caregiver who received the intervention.

Results

Of the family caregivers assessed, 63% were eligible, and 32.9% declined to be in the study for time restriction or no interest. In Colombia, the total retention rate of caregivers was 63.4% at the first follow-up and 48% at the second follow-up, while in Brazil was de 52.8% and 46.2%, respectively. At the end of the study, the sample comprised 28 and 70 caregivers in the intervention and control groups, respectively, for a retention rate of 47%. Of 104 family caregivers allocated to the intervention group, 42 (40.3%) received five sessions. Most reported not completing the Caregiver's Activity Diary.

Conclusion

The recruitment of family caregivers, participant retention, and adherence to the telephone intervention was unsuccessful. Future studies should apply an assessment tool during the recruitment of family caregivers and replace the term "caregiver" with "care provider" in the material involved in the research; define a retention protocol before starting the study and involve family caregivers in the design of the interventions.