Animal Assisted Activity Program on Patients and Staff on an Inpatient Surgical Oncology Unit

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Postoperative Care

Treatments: Behavioral: Caring Canine program; Behavioral: baseline and post assessment; Other: standard post surgery care

Study type: Observational

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT02363608

15-010

Details and patient eligibility

About

The purpose of this study is to describe the effects of canine-assisted activity visits on patients and staff in a hospital setting. The Caring Canines program uses dogs who have been trained to be obedient, calm and comforting. It involves a visit by a volunteer (called the dog's handler) and the volunteer's dog that has been trained and tested to have a good personality and to follow commands. A visit typically lasts about 10-15 minutes with the patient interacting with the dog while the dog is supervised by the handler. Memorial Sloan Kettering currently has Caring Canine dogs visit patients but the investigators don't yet know the impact of these visits on patients and staff. The investigators would like to see how the Caring Canine visits impact a patients' mood, including anxiety, stress, and sense of well-being. Two groups of patients will take part in this study - the first group will receive standard post surgery care and will not receive a visit from the Caring Canines program and the second group will receive daily visits (Tuesday -Friday) from the Caring Canines program while they are on M15. The purpose of this study is to look at differences in well-being between patients who have the visits with the dogs and patients who do not.

Enrollment: 146 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Patients

• Age greater than 21
• Admitted to M15 following a Monday or Tuesday surgery
• Ability to speak and read English.

Staff

• Age greater than 21
• Works at least one day shift a week on M15
• Ability to speak and read English

Exclusion criteria

Patients

• Self reported allergy to dogs
• Medical need to be in an isolation room
• Medical need to be in a Protective Environment room .

Staff

• Self reported allergy to dogs

Trial design

146 participants in 3 patient groups

standard post surgery care

Description:

An initial cohort of consecutive patients admitted to the 15th floor of the hospital on a Monday or Tuesday will form the usual care control arm of the study. Once this cohort is completed, the Caring Canines program will start.

Treatment:

Other: standard post surgery care

Caring Canines program

Description:

Once the standard of care cohort is completed, the Caring Canines program will start making visits on the 15th floor and a second cohort of consecutive patients admitted to M15 on a Monday or Tuesday will form the intervention (experimental) arm of the study.patients admitted to M15 on a Monday or Tuesday will form the intervention (experimental) arm of the study.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Caring Canine program

Behavioral: baseline and post assessment

staff canine-assisted

Description:

For the staff portion of this study a longitudinal pre and post intervention design will be used. Baseline staff assessments will occur prior to the Caring Canine program being implemented on the unit. The assessments include questions about compassion satisfaction and compassion fatigue as well as some open ended questions about your thoughts on the Caring Canines program. Post assessment will occur after the program has been active on the unit for at least 6 weeks. Only staff who work at least one Monday - Friday day shift each week will be eligible to participate.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Caring Canine program

Behavioral: baseline and post assessment