1 Working Papers in the Health Sciences 1:8 Summer ISSN 2051-6266 / 20140044 Sue Later, Professor of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton, UK Jane Hopkinson, Professor of Nursing, School of Healthcare Sciences, Cardif University, UK Elizabeth Lowson, Senior Research Fellow, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton, UK Sue Duke, Senior Lecturer, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton Sally Anstey, Lecturer, School of Health Sciences, Cardif University, UK Background Pain is experienced by 71% of people with cancer approaching end of life (EOL) (Teunissen et al 2007). Unpaid carers providing EOL care (EOLC) at home to people with cancer play a signiicant pracical and nursing role in managing medicines. This involves carers selecing, administering and evaluaing the efeciveness of medicines used for control of pain (Kazanowski 2005; van Ryn et al 2011). Internaionally, studies repeatedly idenify that carers experience problems, including: beliefs that pain cannot be controlled and concerns about addicion (Ferrell et al 1995; Leizia et al 2004), hesitancy to administer analgesics (Lin 2000), knowledge deicits (Oldham and Kristjansen 2004) and insuicient informaion provision by nurses (Schumacher et al 2002; Bee et al 2008). Studies have also revealed the distress engendered through carers seeing a loved one in pain (Ferrell et al 1991; Key words: carers, cancer, complex intervenion, pain management, palliaive Mike Bennet, St Gemma’s Professor of Palliaive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Leeds, UK Peter WF Smith, Professor of Social Staisics, Southampton Staisical Sciences Research Insitute, University of Southampton, UK Carl May, Professor of Healthcare Innovaion, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton, UK Alison Richardson, Clinical Professor of Cancer Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundaion Trust Abstract Background: Many people with cancer experience pain at the end of life. Family carers play a signiicant role in managing pain medicaion: a pracical and nursing skill that is both central and criical to paient and carer. There is signiicant evidence this is problemaic for carers and paients. Family carers oten lack informaion and conidence, with some believing pain cannot be controlled and are concerned about medicaion becoming addicive. Carers’ roles in cancer pain management have been neglected, and a carer-focused, tailored intervenion has the potenial to improve care in this area. Methods/design: A feasibility study is being conducted (2013-2015) to test the feasibility, acceptability and eicacy of a newly developed intervenion (Cancer Carers Medicines Management: CCMM) to improve carers’ knowledge, beliefs, skills and self-eicacy for pain medicines management, and to decrease carer strain. The feasibility trial involves recruiing nurses and carers in two sites, to inform a follow-on randomised control trial focusing on efeciveness. This paper presents the feasibility study protocol. Discussion: The feasibility trial aims to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the study methods and intervenion, and to provide preliminary data concerning the intervenion’s impact. This will include the intervenion’s impact on carer outcomes using validated quesionnaires measuring carer pain medicaion knowledge, beliefs and skills; self-eicacy and carer strain. Secondary outcomes from validated quesionnaires and interviews will include percepions of paient pain, burden of the intervenion, and factors inhibiing or facilitaing intervenion use Study protocol for a feasibility trial of Cancer Carer Medicines Management (CCMM): an educational intervention for carer management of pain medication in cancer patients at end of life Latter S, Hopkinson J, Lowson E, Duke S, Anstey S, Bennett M, Smith P, May C, Richardson A Author details