NCT05550727 · ACTIVE NOT RECRUITING

The PorchLight Project

The PorchLight Project is testing a training program for volunteer Senior Companions who visit and support older adults with memory loss. The goal is to see whether better-trained companions improve the experience for clients and volunteers in a real-world community setting. This is a Phase NA pragmatic trial, meaning researchers are studying how an approach works when folded into everyday community services — not a controlled lab setting.

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion Criteria:
In keeping with the incorporation of pragmatic design elements, the eligibility criteria of volunteers and persons with AD/ADRD is deliberately lax in order to best reflect LSS-MN "routine practice." Participants must be either a volunteer or client involved in the LSS-MN standard Caregiver \& Companion Program service programs. Programmatic and survey data on the volunteers, clients, and proxies involved will be shared with the UMN team. While all data received may be analyzed (see analysis section below), data analysis is expected to focus on those who meet the following additional criteria:
* Volunteers who are listed in the LSS database.
* Clients with cognitive concerns (i.e. minor confusion, memory loss, diagnosis for their memory loss, or concerns about cognition) via the LSS-MN surveys and/or the LSS-MN CRM database.
If memory loss is indicated via the database or survey, it will be assumed that the client has memory loss, even if there are discrepancies. Due to the nature of the data, we expect discrepancies to exist and will document other decisions made during analysis.
Exclusion Criteria:
As data is made available, the UMN research team expects to receive survey data from all the clients and volunteers in LSS-MN Caregiver \& Companion Services programming who complete the surveys, and those included in the LSS database. Since LSS-MN administers surveys to every client and volunteer involved in their LSS-MN Caregiver \& Companion program (as able), data likely will be obtained from individuals who do not meet the memory-specific criteria. However, as needed, UMN may choose to exclude one or more of the following from analysis. Again, the researcher/research staff best judgement will be used when conducting analyses and will document decisions accordingly:
● Clients who do not have memory loss
In addition, any client and volunteer can choose to not complete surveys, so we would not have survey data from those individuals, and may continue with routine attempts at surveying at the next data collection time-point. Missing surveys may be considered during analysis.
Please note: Due to the eligibility criteria for volunteers and clients in the LSS-MN program, we do not anticipate any data for those under 18 years of age. Although the real-world, pragmatic design will allow us to include caregivers under the age of 21), it is important to note that LSS-MN's most recent data on caregivers participating in their volunteer programs indicate none under the age of 21

The sponsor's own eligibility wording, lightly reformatted. The study team makes the final eligibility decision — worth discussing with your doctor.

Eligibility criteria as of 2025-12-17

View full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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