In this proof-of-concept study, our multidisciplinary team will conduct a pilot randomized clinical trial to test the feasibility of the innovative AUdio + RAdio (AURA) system to enhance personalized supportive care for cancer patients and caregivers during post-treatment care transition. The investigators will randomly assign 30 cancer patients with newly created ostomies for cancer treatment with curative intent and their primary caregivers to the AURA or usual care groups (30 patient-caregiver dyads, a total of 60 individuals). AURA is defined as a system that connects audio-based voice assistant devices with radiofrequency (RF) sensing technology to gather relevant patient information automatically, interactively, and with context-awareness and to store a patient's health records that otherwise had to be measured and entered manually into an electronic system. The users of this system will be the entire care team, consisting of the patient and their family members as well as the caregivers and healthcare providers at remote sites. The investigators will conduct pre- and post-assessments of quality of life (QOL) and patient-reported outcomes (PRO, symptoms) at baseline upon enrollment and 2 months later. If results indicate that the pilot trial is feasible, the investigators will design and conduct a definitive trial to examine the efficacy of AURA, a potentially scalable intervention that can be disseminated through oncology clinics nationwide to enhance post-treatment care for cancer patients with ostomies who transition from hospital professional care to self-management at home and their caregivers.
This is a proof-of-concept pilot randomized clinical trial to test the usability and feasibility of the innovative Audio + Radio (AURA) system to enhance personalized supportive care for cancer patients and caregivers during post-ostomy care transition.