Workshops for Veterans With Vision and Hearing Loss (DSLW)

US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)

Status and phase: Completed; Early Phase 1

Conditions: Deafness; Blindness

Treatments: Behavioral: DSL Workshop

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other U.S. Federal agency

Identifiers

NCT01109576

C7460-P

Details and patient eligibility

About

This is a pilot study of workshops to help Veterans with both vision and hearing loss live a happier, fuller and less stressful life. The results will be used to guide the development of a large scale clinical trial.

Full description

This pilot study will enrolled 13 Veterans with Dual Sensory Loss (DSL), age 65 to over 89. The project headquarters in the Portland Oregon Veterans Affairs Medical Center will be tasked with the development of the workshops and writing of a Curriculum and Procedures Manual. The Atlanta VAMC research collaborators enrolled the 13 Veterans. Staff turnover reduced time available for enrollment and data collection. We therefore eliminated the original comparison group design and this study had only one experimental intervention arm and no control intervention or other arm. Veterans were chronologically enrolled who responded to recruitment letters and who passed telephone and onsite screening. The intervention consisted of six weekly two hour workshops providing information, skills training and exercises about self-managing DSL effects on daily life. Preliminary effectiveness data was collected and analyzed, and a large scale clinical trial will be proposed as a followup to explore the efficacy of this management approach. This study data tracked pre and post intervention within subject changes.

Enrollment: 13 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 55+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Veteran;
• Vision loss > 20/70 better eye;
• Hearing loss > 40 decibels better ear;
• Cognition Within Normal Limits (WNL);
• No behavioral flag or psychiatric diagnosis;
• Documented psychosocial restrictions secondary to vision and hearing loss

Exclusion criteria

• Vision and/or hearing can be corrected by surgical or pharmacological treatment;
• Requires use of sign language interpreter

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: N/A

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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13 participants in 1 patient group

DSL workshop participants

Experimental group

Description:

Three to five Veterans with DSL.

Treatment:

Behavioral: DSL Workshop