Couples-Based Interventions After Prostate Cancer Treatment
Walker et al. [2013] conducted this pilot study to evaluate an educational intervention designed to help couples anticipate and manage ADT generated changes, and to investigate whether such intervention impacts couple's relationships favorably. The participants were Caucasian men with PC who had either just started, or were scheduled to begin ADT, and showed no evidence of metastatic disease. Partners of any age were permitted to participate as long as they had English fluency and were either married or common-law female partners to the patient. Following consent, couples were given their own baseline questionnaire packets and instructed to complete each questionnaire and seal them in individual envelopes. Upon completion, 20 couples were randomized as a unit to either a treatment arm or UC (number of participants in experimental and control arms were not listed). Couples were assessed at two time points: baseline and at six months following baseline assessments.
The educational intervention involved reading a 70-page booklet entitled "Androgen Deprivation Therapy: a Guide for Prostate Cancer Patients and their Partners," which discussed different ways to manage the side effects of ADT that directly affect patients (e.g., hot flashes and fatigue), as well as those that impact the couple (e.g., reduced libido and emotional liability). Each couple had two weeks to read the booklet, and subsequently received a one-hour private educational review session. The educational review session was headed by a male and female team to ensure that couples' individual needs were adequately met. The educational review session served as an opportunity for couples to address any remaining concerns that may have come up while reading the booklet, and to address any issues that may have not been brought up in the booklet. By providing a combination of an educational booklet as well as a review session, Walker and colleagues [2013] intended to help couples maintain a co-supportive bond that includes emotional and sexual intimacy.
Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) and Maintenance of Intimacy: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study of an Educational Intervention for Patients and Their Partners
Overview
Walker et al. [2013] conducted this pilot study to evaluate an educational intervention designed to help couples anticipate and manage ADT generated changes, and to investigate whether such intervention impacts couple's relationships favorably. The participants were Caucasian men with PC who had either just started, or were scheduled to begin ADT, and showed no evidence of metastatic disease. Partners of any age were permitted to participate as long as they had English fluency and were either married or common-law female partners to the patient. Following consent, couples were given their own baseline questionnaire packets and instructed to complete each questionnaire and seal them in individual envelopes. Upon completion, 20 couples were randomized as a unit to either a treatment arm or UC (number of participants in experimental and control arms were not listed). Couples were assessed at two time points: baseline and at six months following baseline assessments.
Intervention
The educational intervention involved reading a 70-page booklet entitled "Androgen Deprivation Therapy: a Guide for Prostate Cancer Patients and their Partners," which discussed different ways to manage the side effects of ADT that directly affect patients (e.g., hot flashes and fatigue), as well as those that impact the couple (e.g., reduced libido and emotional liability). Each couple had two weeks to read the booklet, and subsequently received a one-hour private educational review session. The educational review session was headed by a male and female team to ensure that couples' individual needs were adequately met. The educational review session served as an opportunity for couples to address any remaining concerns that may have come up while reading the booklet, and to address any issues that may have not been brought up in the booklet. By providing a combination of an educational booklet as well as a review session, Walker and colleagues [2013] intended to help couples maintain a co-supportive bond that includes emotional and sexual intimacy.
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