AzTrials
AzTrials

Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary DiseaseWHEZNCT01627418

Warm Homes for Elder New Zealanders

A study testing Energy Voucher in people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, run by University of Otago at 3 sites in New Zealand.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

Aim The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether fuel subsidies reduce exacerbations of COPD among people aged over 55, and therefore whether providing such subsidies is a cost-beneficial policy initiative. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 55 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
What is being tested?
Energy Voucher
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
522 participants
Where
3 sitesNew Zealand
Study dates
Apr 2009to Feb 2013
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 55 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Post Bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio < Lower Limit of Normal (NHanesIII)
  • Post Bronchodilator FEV1 < 80% of the predicted FEV1 (NHanesIII)
  • OR - In the last three years either went to hospital for their COPD or took antibiotics/steriods for their COPD

Who cannot join

  • Not planning to stay in the same dwelling until the end of the study
  • Does not want to take part in research
  • Unwilling to answer inclusion questionnaire
  • Unable to communicate effectively

Trial locations and contacts

3 sites in 1 country.

New Zealand3 sites

  • Christchurch

    Christchurch

  • Wellington / Hutt/ Porirua

    Wellington, Wellington Region

  • Wanganui / Manawatu

    Whanganui

Other trials in New Zealand

About this study

Official title: Warm Homes for Elder New Zealanders: a Community Trial of People With COPD

Aim

The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether fuel subsidies reduce exacerbations of COPD among people aged over 55, and therefore whether providing such subsidies is a cost-beneficial policy initiative.

Read more

The Warm Homes for Elder New Zealanders Study enrolled community-dwelling people aged over 55 with moderate or worse COPD. Prior to the study commencing the houses were insulated (if feasible, \& the house-owner agreed). Data were collected on the health and energy use of the participants.

The households randomly assigned to the "early" intervention group had a subsidy to their power account their first winter in the study. The subsidy was the intervention and was designed to enable the participants, if they chose to do so, to keep their house warmer during the winter.

Read the detailed description

Warm Homes for Elder New Zealanders (WHEZ)

Background Although there has been considerable recent work on the prevention, management and causes of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), the contribution of housing has not been well researched. This is despite the socio-economic patterning of COPD (Maori women have the highest rate of COPD that has been recorded for any group of women), and the relationship between socio-economic deprivation and housing conditions.

It is likely that improved heating would reduce exacerbations of COPD as:

  • COPD patients with the most advanced disease tend to be older people who often live on a fixed income and may be unable to afford adequate heating
  • There is a high excess of winter hospitalisations in COPD patients indicating COPD exacerbations may be triggered by cold conditions.
  • About one third of exacerbations of COPD are triggered by respiratory infections.
  • The Housing, Insulation and Health Study demonstrated a reduction in self-reported respiratory disease after houses were insulated. Therefore improving the heating in households with a COPD patient may reduce respiratory infections and this in turn would reduce the number and severity of exacerbations.

The percentage of people over 65 in New Zealand will increase from 12% to 22% over the next 25 years. Therefore it will become increasingly important to find cost-effective ways of reducing the morbidity of the older age group. As COPD is a significant cause of morbidity amongst older people, this study investigates a potentially cost effective intervention to reduce both the likelihood of expensive hospital stays and improve the quality of life for older people.

Aim To evaluate whether fuel subsidies reduce exacerbations of COPD among people aged over 55, and therefore whether providing such subsidies is a cost-beneficial policy initiative.

Potential Benefits The potential benefits of the study include reducing the burden of disease. The patients and their caregivers may experience improved quality of life. Hospitals may experience fewer patients requiring treatment during the winter. A cost-benefit analysis will quantify the benefits.

Being tested
Energy Voucher, No intervention : control arm
Keywords
COPD, CORD, COAD
Medical subject headings
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Energy VoucherBehavioural

    Receive the intervention the first winter enrolled in the study. The intervention is a electricity voucher and a short pamphlet describing how to work out how much heat the voucher can buy.

  • No intervention : control armBehavioural

    Do not receive the money or pamphlet in the initial study year

Study groups in NCT01627418
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
VoucherExperimentalReceive the intervention ("Energy Voucher") the first winter enrolled in the study. The intervention is a electricity voucher and a short pamphlet describing how to work out how much heat the voucher can buy.
Receives: Behavioral: Energy Voucher
ControlOtherReceive the intervention the second winter enrolled in the study (thus "No intervention : control arm"). The intervention is a electricity voucher and a short pamphlet describing how to work out how much heat the voucher can buy.
Receives: Behavioral: No intervention : control arm

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Moderate or severe exacerbations of COPD during winter for which hospitalisation, systemic corticosteroids and/or antibiotics are required to treat the exacerbation

    Measured: Four months

Secondary outcomes (11)

  1. Severe exacerbations of COPD during winter for which hospitalisation is required to treat the exacerbation

    Measured: Four months

  2. Moderate exacerbations of COPD during winter; which will be defined as requiring treatment with systemic corticosteroids and/or antibiotics

    Measured: Four months

  3. All-cause hospitalisation during winter

    Measured: Four months

  4. Temperature in the living and bedrooms during winter

    Measured: Four months

  5. Electricity usage during winter

    Measured: Four months

  6. Costs to health care system of index participant during winter

    Measured: Four months

  7. Self-reported quality of life for index participant during winter

    Measured: Four months

  8. Respiratory health of other people living in household during winter

    Measured: Four months

  9. Any changes in index participant baseline lung function

    Measured: course of study ( up to 18 months)

  10. Study withdrawals due to death or greater dependency

    Measured: course of study (up to 18 months)

  11. Support person burden

    Measured: course of study (up to 18 months)

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted25 Jun 2012 (estimated)
  2. Study startApr 2009
  3. Primary completionFeb 2013
  4. Study completionFeb 2013

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Supportive care
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Investigator
Enrolment
522 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT01627418
Sponsor's protocol ID
HRC08/072AR
Acronym
WHEZ
Status last verified
Jun 2015
First submitted
2 Aug 2011
Last updated
17 Jun 2015
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Viggers HE, Ingham TR, Chapman RB, Crane J, Currie AB, Davies C, Keall M, Howden-Chapman PL. Impact of a Heating Voucher on Health Outcomes in COPD Patients: A Randomised Controlled Trial. Int J Chron Obstruct Pulmon Dis. 2025 Apr 16;20:1097-1109. doi: 10.2147/COPD.S483194. eCollection 2025.

    PubMed 40260082

  • Viggers H, Howden-Chapman P, Ingham T, Chapman R, Pene G, Davies C, Currie A, Pierse N, Wilson H, Zhang J, Baker M, Crane J. Warm homes for older people: aims and methods of a randomised community-based trial for people with COPD. BMC Public Health. 2013 Feb 26;13:176. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-13-176.

    PubMed 23442368

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Energy Voucher in people with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, run by University of Otago at 3 sites in New Zealand.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 4 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 17 Jun 2015. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 3 sites in New Zealand. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Moderate or severe exacerbations of COPD during winter for which hospitalisation, systemic corticosteroids and/or antibiotics are required to treat the exacerbation (time frame: Four months). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT01627418, which also lists 2 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 17 Jun 2015.

AzTrials uses cookies for analytics and advertising. You can accept or reject them; the site works either way. Privacy Policy.

Free account

Keep searching with a free account

You’ve used your 3 free searches for this session. Log in or create a free AzTrials account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in