COPD Resources, Education, and Activity Designed for You Study

"The self-guided eduction program consists of a mailed booklet entitled, Learning to live with COPD, along with two additional mailings with information on the ALA's Patient and Caregiver Network and the Respiratory Health Association's COPD Caregiver's Toolkit."

The counselor-led education program combines mailings with phone counseling delivered by ALA Lung Helpline counselors. Three phone sessions (20-30 minutes each) are completed over the course of 6 weeks in the main treatment phase, with two additional optional booster sessions offered between 6 and 12-weeks post-randomization. The counselor-led program follows a structured outline of curriculum for each session, focusing on the topic areas of developing a COPD exacerbation action plan, recognizing COPD exacerbations, and coping with breathlessness.

The physical activity program will consist of a personalized prescription for home-based exercise following published guidelines, consisting of aerobic, strengthening, and flexibility exercises, tailored to participants' current fitness level and dyspnea symptoms. Aerobic exercise will incorporate ground-based walking training, a well-established, safe, and feasible physical activity program for individuals with COPD. Participants will complete three videoconference sessions (30-45 minutes each) over the course of 6 weeks in the main treatment phase, with two additional optional booster sessions between week 6 and 12.

Participants will receive inhaler technique education using a virtual teach-to-goal method. In each session, individuals are observed using their inhaler, provided feedback, and then observed again. Inhaler technique is scored using a checklist specific to each inhaler device. Participants will complete two inhaler training sessions via videoconference at week 1 and week 4, with an optional booster session offered at week 8.