Couples Coping With Multiple Chronic Medical Conditions (GUGKS)

University of Zurich (UZH)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Chronic Disease; Illness Behavior

Treatments: Behavioral: Expressive Writing

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT01912157

KEK-ZH 2013-0009_GUGKS

Details and patient eligibility

About

Handling of complex health situations (as defined by multimorbidity) in partnership: communication between romantic partners; subjective illness perception; coping with stressful experiences due to multimorbidity.

Intervention : Expressive Writing about subjective illness perception vs. Writing about individual Time-Management Primary Endpoint: subjective Health (e.g. SF 12 questionnaire) Secondary Endpoints: Psychosocial Adjustments (Depression, somatic symptoms, quality of partnership and others)

Full description

Coping in complex health situations (as defined by multimorbidity) and the role of relationship processes for psycho-social adaption: The study investigates interpersonal emotion regulation, disclosure, and illness perceptions in couples with a multimorbid patient. The intervention consists in 3 self-applied solitary written disclosure sessions (expressive writing), the control condition are 3 sessions writing about individual time-management (placebo).

Primary endpoint: subjective health (SF 12 questionnaire) Secondary endpoint: psychosocial adjustments (depression, positive and negative affect, somatic symptoms, adjustment disorder, marital satisfaction, sleep quality)

Enrollment: 22 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Age 18 or older
• multimorbid condition (two or more chronic medical conditions)
• patients living with romantic partner
• very good oral and written command in German
• written consent for participation by patient and partner

Exclusion criteria

• Pregnancy
• Mini Mental State less than 26
• Substance Abuse
• Patients in Palliative Situation
• Patients isolated due to infectious diseases
• Patients participating in other clinical trials within the last 4 weeks before inclusion

Trial design

Primary purpose: Other

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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22 participants in 2 patient groups, including a placebo group

No Intervention

Placebo Comparator group

Description:

The control condition are 3 sessions writing about individual time-management (placebo).

Treatment:

Behavioral: Expressive Writing

Expressive Writing

Active Comparator group

Description:

The intervention consists in 3 self-applied solitary written disclosure sessions (expressive writing).

Treatment:

Behavioral: Expressive Writing