Procedures
dementia
A study invitation letter with the project coordinator’s contact information was shared
via email with directors of Area Agencies on Aging and community-based programs for people
with dementia and their caregivers (e.g. adult day care programs) in Alabama (primary) and
a few other USA states. When interested potential participants contacted the project
coordinator, the coordinator went through the eligibility screening and informed consent
process. Hard copy written consent forms and questionnaires were mailed to potential
participants with a pre-addressed pre-stamped envelope for their return enclosed in the
mailing. Following pretest evaluation, participants were randomly assigned to either the
ACT group or the control group with a 1:1 allocation ratio. The co-investigator (Dr.
Yuen), who had no contact with participants, generated the randomization sequence using a
computer random number generator and handed the project coordinator the sequentially
numbered opaque sealed envelopes containing the participant group allocation list. When
the project coordinator received the signed consent form and completed pretest
questionnaire from participants, she opened the envelope that was matched to the
participant’s study ID number and informed them of their assigned group. A graduate
student research assistant, who was blinded to the group allocation, was responsible for
data entry and management. All participants completed questionnaires again 8 and 12 weeks
after completing their pretest evaluations.The study was conducted with Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval from the
University of Alabama at Birmingham (IRB-300007215). The trial was registered at
ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04847986) before enrollment of the first participant, and the study
was conducted from mid-July 2021 to mid-June 2022.