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Stress, PsychologicalREDEFINENCT03571347

Self Help Plus for Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Europe

A study testing Self Help Plus and Enhanced Treatment As Usual in people with Stress, Psychological, run by Universita di Verona at 1 site in Italy.

Completed

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

Official record
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Trial summary

Background The flow of asylum seekers and refugees moving to European and bordering countries has progressively increased in the last years. This population is exposed to physical and mental challenges before and during displacement, and suffer continuing hardships after arrival in a High-Income Country. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Stress, Psychological
What is being tested?
Self Help Plus and Enhanced Treatment As Usual
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
459 participants
Where
1 siteItaly
Study dates
1 Sep 2018to 31 Dec 2020
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 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Age 18 or above;
  • Able to speak and understand the target languages: Arabic, and/or Urdu, and/or Dari, and/or English;
  • Asylum seeker or refugee;
  • Presence of psychological distress, as shown by a score of 3 or more at the 12 item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12 ≥ 3);
  • Both oral and written informed consent to enter the study.

Who cannot join

  • Presence of any mental disorders according to DSM-V and ICD-10, as shown by a positive M.I.N.I.;
  • Acute medical conditions contraindicating study participation, based on clinical judgment of the health care professional with a clinical background who performs the screening;
  • Clinical evidence of imminent suicide risk or suicide risk scored as "moderate or high" (or a positive suicidality behaviour disorder) by the M.I.N.I. (section SUICIDALITY);
  • Clinical evidence that the decision-making capacity is impaired.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Italy1 site
  • Università di Verona

    Verona, VR, 37134

Other trials in Italy

About this study

Official title: Refugee Emergency: DEFining and Implementing Novel Evidence-based Psychosocial Interventions

Background The flow of asylum seekers and refugees moving to European and bordering countries has progressively increased in the last years. This population is exposed to physical and mental challenges before and during displacement, and suffer continuing hardships after arrival in a High-Income Country. As a consequence, asylum seekers and refugees are extremely vulnerable to some common mental health conditions, i.e., post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and other forms of disabling psychological distress. The World Health Organization has developed a new 5-session self-help intervention called Self-Help Plus (SH+) for managing stress and coping with adversity. SH+ has been evaluated in RCTs in low- and middle-income countries, however, there is no rigorous evidence on its cost-effectiveness in preventing the onset of mental disorders in HIC.

Objectives To evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of the SH+ in asylum seekers and refugees with psychological distress resettled in six sites of five European countries (Italy, Austria, Germany, Finland, and two sites in the UK), as compared with enhanced treatment as usual (ETAU). The primary outcome is the reduction in the incidence of any mental disorders. Secondary outcomes are mental health symptoms, psychological functioning, well-being, drop-out rates, and economic outcomes.

Read more

Design This is a multicentre parallel-group randomized controlled trial, in which participants will have an equal probability (1:1) of being randomly allocated to the SH+ or the ETAU.

Methodology Asylum seekers and refugees who screen positive at the General Health Questionnaire (≥ 3) and without a formal diagnosis of any psychiatric disorders according to the M.I.N.I. International Neuropsychiatric Interview will enter the study. After random allocation they will receive the SH+ or the ETAU. Assessments will be performed by masked assessors immediately after intervention, at 6 months, and a 12 months after randomization.

Time frame The recruitment phase will last 12 months. After the screening, eligible participants will be assessed at baseline, post-intervention, and at 6- and 12-month follow-up. The SH+ delivery will be conducted in around 5 weeks.

Expected outcomes A reduction in the incidence of psychiatric diagnoses at 6-month follow-up, and a general improvement in mental health symptoms, psychological functioning, well-being, and economic outcomes at each assessment.

Read the detailed description

Asylum seekers and refugees will be randomized to receive the SH+ intervention or Enhanced Treatment as Usual. The SH+ has been developed by WHO and collaborators working in the humanitarian field, with expertise in global mental health and psychosocial interventions. SH+ consists of a pre-recorded audio course, delivered by facilitators in a group setting and complemented with an illustrated self-help book. SH+ was designed to be relevant for large adversity-affected populations: it is transdiagnostic, easily adaptable to different cultures and languages, and both meaningful and safe for people with and without mental disorders. The format of SH+ is innovative in that it seeks to ensure that key intervention components are delivered as intended without the burden of extensive facilitator training. SH+ programme is based on acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy, with distinct features. SH+ programme has two components: a pre-recorded course and an illustrated self-help book. Pre-recorded audio material (culturally adapted) is delivered across five 2-hour sessions to groups of up to 30 people. The audio material imparts key information about stress management and guides participants through individual exercises and small group discussions. To augment the audio recordings, an illustrated self-help book reviews all essential content and concepts 19. Written manuals help briefly-trained, non-specialist facilitators to conduct the course using the pre-recorded audio. The SH+ intervention will be delivered by briefly-trained, non-specialist facilitators.

The control intervention will receive Enhanced Treatment as Usual.

Being tested
Self Help Plus, Enhanced Treatment As Usual
Keywords
distress, post-traumatic stress disorder, prevention, asylum seekers, refugees, Self Help Plus, Europe
Medical subject headings
Stress, Psychological, Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic

What participants receive

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

  • Self Help PlusBehavioural

    5-session psychosocial intervention

  • Enhanced Treatment As UsualOther

    Routine social support and/or care, and information about freely available mental health services, social services, NGOs, and community networks providing support to asylum seekers and refugees

Study groups in NCT03571347
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Self Help PlusExperimentalSH+ programme has been developed by WHO and collaborators working in the humanitarian field, with expertise in global mental health and psychosocial interventions. SH+ programme consists of a pre-recorded audio course, complemented with bibliotherapy, and thanks to this format not requiring much time from experts for implementation. SH+ consists of 5 sessions.
Receives: Behavioral: Self Help Plus
Enhanced Treatment As UsualOtherControl arm participants will receive routine social support and/or care according to ordinary practice and following local regulations. Additionally, they will receive baseline and follow-up assessments according to the study schedule, and information about freely available mental health services, social services and community networks providing support to asylum seekers and refugees, and NGOs' contact details.
Receives: Other: Enhanced Treatment As Usual

What is being measured

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

  1. Psychiatric diagnosis at 6-month follow-up

    The primary outcome will be the number of participants with a current psychiatric diagnosis 6 at six-month follow-up, as measured by the M.I.N.I.

    Measured: 6-month follow-up

Secondary outcomes (10)
  1. Psychological distress

    Psychological distress will be measured through the General Health Questionnaire-12. The questionnaire asks whether the respondent has experienced a particular symptom or behaviour recently. Each item is rated on a four-point Likert scale (less than usual, no more than usual, rather more than usual, or much more than usual); and gives a total score of 36 or 12 based on the GHQ version and on the selected scoring methods.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  2. Psychiatric diagnosis

    Number of participants with a current psychiatric diagnosis as measured by the M.I.N.I.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  3. Functioning

    The WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS 2.0) is a generic assessment instrument assessing health and disability. It is used across all diseases, including mental, neurological and substance use disorders. It is simple to administer and applicable across cultures.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  4. Depressive symptoms

    Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). The PHQ-9 is a 9-item instrument measuring the presence and severity of depression. Major depression is diagnosed if five or more of the nine depressive symptom criteria have been present at least "more than half the days" in the past two weeks, and one of the symptoms includes depressed mood or anhedonia.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  5. Subjective wellbeing

    WHO-5 Wellbeing index. The WHO-5 Wellbeing Index is a 5-item questionnaire measuring current psychological wellbeing and quality of life, rather than psychopathology.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  6. Self-defined psychosocial goals

    The Psychological Outcome Profiles instrument (PSYCHLOPS) consists of four questions. It contains three domains: problems (2 questions), function (1 question) and wellbeing (1 question).

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  7. Symptoms of Post traumatic stress disorder

    PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). The PCL-5 is a 20-item self-report measure that assesses the 20 DSM-5 symptoms of PTSD.

    Measured: Post-intervention; 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  8. Health-related quality of life

    The EuroQol-5Dimension-3 level version (EQ-5D-3L). The EQ-5D-3L is applicable to a wide range of health conditions and treatments, it provides a simple descriptive profile and a single index value for health status that can be used in the clinical and economic evaluation of health care as well as in population health surveys.

    Measured: 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  9. Cost-effectiveness

    The Client Service Receipt Inventory, European version (CSSRI-EU): Client sociodemographic and service receipt inventory (adapted version with other socio- demographic characteristics). The CSSRI is a research tool developed for collecting information that describes in detail the types and level of services that comprise the care package of each study member.

    Measured: 6-month and 12-month follow-ups

  10. Proportion of participants leaving the study early

    Number of people leaving the study prematurely at any times, and reasons for discontinuation.

    Measured: This information will be collecfted at any time.

Timeline

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

  1. First posted27 Jun 2018
  2. Study start1 Sep 2018
  3. Primary completion30 Jun 2020
  4. Study completion31 Dec 2020

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
Prevention
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Model description
RE-DEFINE is a prospective, multicentre, randomized, parallel-group trial that will follow study participants over a period of 12-months. Asylum seekers and refugees with psychological distress, but without a mental disorder according to the MINI International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I.) for DSM-V and ICD-10, will be randomly assigned to the Self Help Plus intervention or to enhanced treatment as usual (ETAU).
Masking
Single blind
Who is masked
Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
459 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03571347
Sponsor's protocol ID
779255
Acronym
REDEFINE
Status last verified
Nov 2022
First submitted
18 Jun 2018
Last updated
7 Nov 2022
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Publications

  • Purgato M, Carswell K, Acarturk C, Au T, Akbai S, Anttila M, Baumgartner J, Bailey D, Biondi M, Bird M, Churchill R, Eskici S, Hansen LJ, Heron P, Ilkkursun Z, Kilian R, Koesters M, Lantta T, Nose M, Ostuzzi G, Papola D, Popa M, Sijbrandij M, Tarsitani L, Tedeschi F, Turrini G, Uygun E, Valimaki MA, Wancata J, White R, Zanini E, Cuijpers P, Barbui C, Van Ommeren M. Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of Self-Help Plus (SH+) for preventing mental disorders in refugees and asylum seekers in Europe and Turkey: study protocols for two randomised controlled trials. BMJ Open. 2019 May 14;9(5):e030259. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-030259.

    PubMed 31092670

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Self Help Plus and Enhanced Treatment As Usual in people with Stress, Psychological, run by Universita di Verona at 1 site in Italy.

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 5 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 7 Nov 2022. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Italy. 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?

Psychiatric diagnosis at 6-month follow-up (time frame: 6-month follow-up). 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 NCT03571347, which also lists 1 linked publication.

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 7 Nov 2022; AzTrials last refreshed its copy on 6 Nov 2026.

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