Reducing Suicide Risk Among Aging Caregivers of Persons With AD/ADRD

Launched by TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY · Sep 19, 2023

Keywords

ClinConnect Summary

This clinical trial focuses on helping older caregivers who look after loved ones with Alzheimer's Disease or related conditions. The goal is to reduce the risk of suicide among these caregivers by providing them with skills training based on a therapy called Dialectical Behavior Therapy. This training aims to support caregivers who may be feeling overwhelmed or struggling with their mental health, ultimately improving their well-being and ability to care for their loved ones.

To participate in this trial, caregivers must be at least 50 years old, be the main person taking care of someone diagnosed with Alzheimer's, and show signs of feeling suicidal or depressed. Participants should also be fluent in English and willing to provide a small blood sample for testing. It's important to note that individuals with certain cognitive impairments will not be included in the study. If eligible, caregivers can expect to join a supportive group where they can learn valuable skills to help manage their feelings and improve their overall health.

Gender

ALL

Eligibility criteria

• Inclusion Criteria:
• • being age 50 and over (as most informal caregivers of persons with AD/ADRD are 50 or older; AARP, 2020; Chi et al., 2019)
• • being the primary informal caregiver
• • living with an AD/ADRD-diagnosed patient
• • being willing to be prodded for bloodspots
• • demonstrating English-fluency
• • endorsing a direct or indirect SI/suicide risk
• • Eligible individuals will score above clinical cutoffs for SI/suicide risk on at least 1 of 3 measures: the Suicide Behavior Questionnaire-R (SBQ-R; score \> 6; Osman et al., 2002), Interpersonal Needs Question-naire (INQ; thwarted belonging score \> 35; and perceived burden \> 17; Mitchell et al., 2020) or the Geriatric De-pression Scale (GDS; score \> 5 Heisel et al., 2005).
• Exclusion Criteria:
• • • Participants with neurocognitive impairment will be excluded (a Mini-Mental State Exam score ≤ 23; Folstein et al., 1975; Kochhann et al., 2010)