CommunicationNCT05995574
Avatar Contraception Communication Training
A study testing avatar communication training in people with Communication, run by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at 2 sites in United States.
Trial summary
In order to support the desire of most adolescents to delay pregnancy (parenting) until their own adulthood, pediatricians must be comfortable and skilled in having reproductive health conversations with adolescents and the mothers of adolescents. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Communication
- What is being tested?
- avatar communication training
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 166 participants
- Where
- 2 sitesUnited States
- Study dates
- 1 Apr 2026to 30 Jun 2030
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
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
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- Providers (medical residents, fellows, attendings)
- Recruited from the Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Medicine Clinic at Children\'s Medical Center of Dallas.
Who cannot join
- Unable to speak or read in Spanish/English
Trial locations and contacts
2 sites in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
United States2 sites
Childrens Health Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine (AYA) Clinic
Dallas, Texas, 75207
Jenny K Francis, MD, 214-456-6792, jenny.francis@utsouthwestern.edu
May KR Lau, MD, 214-456-9099, may.lau@utsouthwestern.edu
UT Southwestern Medical Center
Dallas, Texas, 75390-0966
Jenny KR Francis, MD, MPH, 214-456-6792, jenny.francis@utsouthwestern.edu
Jenny KR Francis, MD, MPH, 214-456-6792, jkrfrancis@gmail.com
About this study
Official title: Improving Clinician Communication About Contraception Using Teen and Parent Avatars
In order to support the desire of most adolescents to delay pregnancy (parenting) until their own adulthood, pediatricians must be comfortable and skilled in having reproductive health conversations with adolescents and the mothers of adolescents. Advocates for Youth (AFY), a national, youth-facing, well-established, non-profit, is known for innovative sexual and reproductive health programs. AFY successfully implemented a virtual simulation for schoolteachers to practice sex education scenarios by interacting with culturally diverse student avatars. We will partner with AFY to adapt their novel simulation-based approach to train medical residents in using SDM with youth and parent avatars. Our long-term goal is to build clinician confidence in SDM and actual skills via simulation training with dyadic avatars. We will also explore how evaluation of clinician communication skills varies from youth-, parent-, and clinician-viewpoints.
Read the detailed description
Specific Aims seek to (1) iteratively adapt and refine the simulation training (1a) and measurement tools (1b) with three community advisory boards (CAB) of separate groups of teens, parents, and clinicians; and (2) conduct a proof-of-concept pre-post evaluation of clinician confidence in counseling dyads after one-time exposure to the simulation (n=100 medical residents). We will record residents' communications in the simulation and a subset of clinicians, parents, and adolescents from each CAB will evaluate residents' SDM skills via the Person-Centered Contraception Counseling (PCCC) scale. Hypothesis: Most medical residents (75%) will self-report improvement or stability in confidence with high acceptability of the simulation training. We will explore 1) overall concordance between self- and expert-reported evaluation outcomes (SDM skills, PCCC scale); 2) compare the distribution of each evaluation item by evaluator; and 3) explore correlations between scales by evaluator. Impact: This proof-of-concept study, co-developed and co-evaluated with community members and families, fills a gap in communication training to inform a future fully powered ORBIT stage 3 efficacy trial to test actual triadic communication in the real-world with comparator groups of medical residents across national training programs.
- Conditions
- Communication
- Being tested
- avatar communication training
- Keywords
- Adolescent, Contraception, Training
- Medical subject headings
- Communication
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
avatar communication trainingBehavioural
Avatar simulates a mother and a daughter for the pediatrician to practice communication about contraception.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Avatar training | Experimental | One hundred physician learners will train with the avatar communication training tool as a behavioral intervention. Before the training (T0), the learners will complete a pre-survey to assess their baseline confidence. At the start of training, after a brief introduction and orientation to the tool, the learners will complete a 10-min uninterrupted scenario with a teen-parent avatar dyad about a contraception scenario. After the initial scenario (T1), the learner will pause and complete an assessment to evaluate use of SDM (Shared decision making) skills and PCCC (person-centered contraceptive counseling). Then, the learner will train for an hour with the tool. At the end (T2), the learner will complete another uninterrupted scenario and evaluate their confidence, SDM, and PCCC skills. Receives: Behavioral: avatar communication training |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Questionnaire
Multiple questions will be aggregated to arrive at one reported value to determine "improvement or stability in confidence" in shared decision-making communication.
Measured: Change from baseline (T0) at 0 hours, and end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Secondary outcomes (3)
Acceptability Questionnaire
Weiners implementation outcome measure Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM). Items are measured on a 5-point Likert scale (Completely Disagree-Completely Agree). Score is calculated mean with the higher score meaning acceptability.
Measured: At end of study (T2) at 2-hours
Questionnaire
Self-reported evaluation of a behavioral outcome (SDM (shared decision-making) skills and PCCC (person-centered contraception counseling) from start (T1) to end of training (T2)
Measured: Change from start (T1) at 20 minute to end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Questionnaire
Expert evaluation of behavioral outcome (SDM (shared decision-making) skills and PCCC (person-centered contraception counseling) from start (T1) to end of training (T2)
Measured: Change from start (T1) at 20 minute to end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted16 Aug 2023
- Study start1 Apr 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion30 Jun 2030 (estimated)
- Study completion30 Jun 2030 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for CommunicationStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
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
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Model description
- single intervention arm with pre- and post- evaluation.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 166 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Jenny Francis, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
- Investigators
- Jenny KR Francis, MD, Principal investigator, UTSouthwestern
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05995574
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- Pending funding
- Status last verified
- Aug 2025
- First submitted
- 16 May 2023
- Last updated
- 3 Sep 2025
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- Yes: This study will collect 100 pre-post-surveys from clinicians in training, and 300 survey evaluations of video recordings. The study protocol, data tracking forms, survey, code book, data dictionary and a glossary of domain-specific terms will be shared in a portable document format (PDF).
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 3 Sep 2025. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Improving Clinician Communication About Contraception Using Teen and Parent Avatars
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT05995574
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- Pending funding
- Conditions
- Communication
- Keywords
- Adolescent, Contraception, Training
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Enrolment
- 166 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical CenterUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 1 Apr 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- 30 Jun 2030 (estimated)
- Study completion
- 30 Jun 2030 (estimated)
- First posted
- 16 Aug 2023 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
In order to support the desire of most adolescents to delay pregnancy (parenting) until their own adulthood, pediatricians must be comfortable and skilled in having reproductive health conversations with adolescents and the mothers of adolescents. Advocates for Youth (AFY), a national, youth-facing, well-established, non-profit, is known for innovative sexual and reproductive health programs. AFY successfully implemented a virtual simulation for schoolteachers to practice sex education scenarios by interacting with culturally diverse student avatars. We will partner with AFY to adapt their novel simulation-based approach to train medical residents in using SDM with youth and parent avatars. Our long-term goal is to build clinician confidence in SDM and actual skills via simulation training with dyadic avatars. We will also explore how evaluation of clinician communication skills varies from youth-, parent-, and clinician-viewpoints.
Detailed description
Specific Aims seek to (1) iteratively adapt and refine the simulation training (1a) and measurement tools (1b) with three community advisory boards (CAB) of separate groups of teens, parents, and clinicians; and (2) conduct a proof-of-concept pre-post evaluation of clinician confidence in counseling dyads after one-time exposure to the simulation (n=100 medical residents). We will record residents' communications in the simulation and a subset of clinicians, parents, and adolescents from each CAB will evaluate residents' SDM skills via the Person-Centered Contraception Counseling (PCCC) scale. Hypothesis: Most medical residents (75%) will self-report improvement or stability in confidence with high acceptability of the simulation training. We will explore 1) overall concordance between self- and expert-reported evaluation outcomes (SDM skills, PCCC scale); 2) compare the distribution of each evaluation item by evaluator; and 3) explore correlations between scales by evaluator. Impact: This proof-of-concept study, co-developed and co-evaluated with community members and families, fills a gap in communication training to inform a future fully powered ORBIT stage 3 efficacy trial to test actual triadic communication in the real-world with comparator groups of medical residents across national training programs.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Health services research
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
- Model description
- single intervention arm with pre- and post- evaluation.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Avatar training | Experimental | Behavioral: avatar communication trainingOne hundred physician learners will train with the avatar communication training tool as a behavioral intervention. Before the training (T0), the learners will complete a pre-survey to assess their baseline confidence. At the start of training, after a brief introduction and orientation to the tool, the learners will complete a 10-min uninterrupted scenario with a teen-parent avatar dyad about a contraception scenario. After the initial scenario (T1), the learner will pause and complete an assessment to evaluate use of SDM (Shared decision making) skills and PCCC (person-centered contraceptive counseling). Then, the learner will train for an hour with the tool. At the end (T2), the learner will complete another uninterrupted scenario and evaluate their confidence, SDM, and PCCC skills. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 years and older
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult, Older adult
Key inclusion criteria (2 listed)
- Providers (medical residents, fellows, attendings)
- Recruited from the Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Medicine Clinic at Children\'s Medical Center of Dallas.
Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)
- Unable to speak or read in Spanish/English
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| avatar communication trainingAvatar simulates a mother and a daughter for the pediatrician to practice communication about contraception. | Behavioural | Avatar training |
Primary outcome
Questionnaire
Time frame: Change from baseline (T0) at 0 hours, and end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Multiple questions will be aggregated to arrive at one reported value to determine "improvement or stability in confidence" in shared decision-making communication.
3 secondary outcomes
Acceptability Questionnaire
Time frame: At end of study (T2) at 2-hours
Questionnaire
Time frame: Change from start (T1) at 20 minute to end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Questionnaire
Time frame: Change from start (T1) at 20 minute to end of training (T2) at 2 hours
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 3 Sep 2025.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: Yes. This study will collect 100 pre-post-surveys from clinicians in training, and 300 survey evaluations of video recordings. The study protocol, data tracking forms, survey, code book, data dictionary and a glossary of domain-specific terms will be shared in a portable document format (PDF).
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Jenny KR Francis, MD principal investigator
UTSouthwestern
2 sites in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing avatar communication training in people with Communication, run by University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at 2 sites in United States.
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 2 inclusion and 1 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: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 3 Sep 2025. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 2 sites in United States. 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?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Jenny KR Francis, MD, MPH (214-456-6792, Jenny.Francis@utsouthwestern.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Questionnaire (time frame: Change from baseline (T0) at 0 hours, and end of training (T2) at 2 hours). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
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 3 Sep 2025.