New group therapy aims to combat loneliness in hospitalized seniors
NCT ID NCT05619718
First seen Jun 24, 2026 · Last updated Jun 26, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This pilot study tests whether a group therapy called Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups can help reduce loneliness in older adults admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Fifty participants will attend either this therapy or a standard mutual-help group. Researchers will measure social closeness, loneliness, and well-being to see if the approach is feasible and acceptable.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups (a behavioral group therapy based on functional analytic psychotherapy)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a practical, non-drug way to reduce loneliness and improve social connection in older adults hospitalized for mental health issues.
- What could go wrong
- This is a very small pilot study (50 people) testing only feasibility and short-term outcomes. It is not designed to prove the therapy works, and results may not apply to all older adults.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 50 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Feb 2024
- Expected to finish
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Sep 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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60 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Admission to geriatric psychiatry inpatient unit Exclusion Criteria: * Individuals who are disoriented to person, delirious, unable to tolerate or participate meaningfully in the group, or otherwise unable to provide consent to research and psychotherapy
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Parkwood Institute Mental Health
London, Ontario, N6C 0A7, Canada
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