The goals of this study are to: 1) demonstrate the efficacy of Recovering Together for improving self-reported emotional distress (primary outcome), and post traumatic stress, mindfulness, coping, social support and other relevant outcomes (secondary outcomes); and 2) assess mechanisms (mediators and moderators) of improvement after intervention. We will enroll and randomly assign 194 at risk dyads (97 per study group) to receive either the active intervention or educational control. The trial is single blinded (assessors, patients and staff). The trial will take place at the Massachusetts General Hospital NICU using our established methodology successfully implemented during the R21 pilot study. Study clinicians will deliver 6, 30 minute sessions of active intervention or educational control (2 at bedside and 4 via live video after discharge) to each patient-caregiver dyad. All participants will complete measures at baseline, after completion of program (6 weeks) and 3 months later. They will also complete measures of emotional distress weekly, as well as measures assessing home practice.
The purpose of the present investigation is to test the efficacy of a brief (6 sessions) dyadic (patient and caregiver together) intervention to prevent chronic emotional distress in at risk dyads admitted to a Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit with an acute brain injury. Through this study, we seek to solve the unmet need of preventing chronic emotional distress in Neuroscience Intensive Care Unit (NICU) dyads through a feasible, acceptable and credible program, and ideally improve the recovery trajectory and dyads' overall quality of life.