Project EPIC (Early Palliative Care In COPD): A Formative and Summative Evaluation of the EPIC Telehealth Intervention

Context: Early, concurrent palliative care interventions in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are limited. Project EPIC (Early Palliative Care In COPD) is a multiphase mixed methods study working to fill this gap.

Objectives: To conduct a formative and summative evaluation of EPIC, a telephonic nurse coach-led early palliative care intervention for COPD adapted from the ENABLE© intervention in cancer.

Methods: Phase I Formative Evaluation: Patients with moderate-to-very-severe COPD, family caregivers, and pulmonary and palliative care clinicians rated the acceptability and feasibility of EPIC (≥4 out of five on a Likert-scale survey). Phase II Summative Evaluation: Patients and family caregivers in Phase I participated in a pilot of the three month EPIC prototype to evaluate intervention and data collection feasibility (≥70% completion) and to seek qualitative feedback.

Results: Phase I Formative Evaluation: Patients (n=10), family caregivers (n=10), pulmonary clinicians (n=6), and palliative care clinicians (n=6) found EPIC acceptable and feasible to support adaptation, while priority early palliative care needs in COPD from our prior research mapped well to the EPIC prototype. Phase II Summative Evaluation: Patients (n=5; ages 49-72, 40% moderate COPD, 40% Black) and their family caregivers (n=5; ages 51-73, 40% Black) completed 100% of EPIC prototype components, including weekly telephone sessions, a one month follow-up call, Advance Directive, palliative care clinic attendance, and 95% of monthly phone data collection sessions. Feedback from participants about EPIC was all positive.

Conclusion: EPIC was acceptable and feasible in patients with COPD and their family caregivers. Larger feasibility and effectiveness trials are warranted.