Communication Skills Training for Family Caregivers in Advance Care Planning
Official title: Communication Training for Family Caregivers to Improve Engagement in Advance Care Planning
Funded at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · NIH-11445400 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A caregiver-focused program teaches family members how to communicate effectively with doctors and patients facing advanced cancer, to help plan care and align wishes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2026 |
| Project end | July 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $653,441 |
| NIH project number | 1R01CA309046-01A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11445400 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are family caregivers of patients with advanced cancer who are involved in treatment decisions and end-of-life planning.
✕Less likely to help
Caregivers who are not involved in ACP discussions or whose patient’s care goals are already well established may see limited benefit.
What this research studies
This project offers a caregiver communication skills program designed for families of patients with advanced cancer. It aims to improve how caregivers broker information between patients and healthcare providers and support timely, meaningful advance care planning. The team will develop and test a training module that caregivers can use in real-life conversations about goals of care, prognosis, and preferences. By strengthening these conversations, the program seeks to reduce misunderstandings and ensure the patient's wishes are more accurately reflected in care decisions. The study will be conducted at Mount Sinai with caregiver participants and healthcare professionals.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, families may communicate more clearly about goals of care, leading to care aligned with patient preferences and reduced distress.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work suggests structured communication training can improve caregiver-patient-HCP conversations, but this specific caregiver-focused ACP program is novel in its targeted context.
Where this research is happening
-
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Applebaum, Allison — Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Study coordinator: Applebaum, Allison
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.