Power Over Pain Portal: A Stepped-care Virtual Solution to Deliver Early Intervention to Canadian Youth With Chronic Pain

NCT06076889 | Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: REB#
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 100
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The COVID-19 pandemic is presenting one of the greatest threats to youth mental health seen in generations. Pain is one of the most common symptoms of extreme stress in youth. In 2020, the investigators created an online "stepped-care" program called the Power over Pain Portal. Stepped care is a promising way to improve access to CP care. Stepped care tailors care based on a person's symptom severity. Like a ladder, a person must start with one type of care then "step up" or "step down" to more or less intense care depending on need. The investigators also summarized all online pain management programs for youth to find the best resources to embed into the Portal. The investigators will pilot-test the Portal with youth to ensure it can be implemented effectively and will be clinically beneficial. The investigators will recruit 100 youth with CP to use the Portal for 2 months and see how they interact with the features and if it helps to improve their pain and mental health. The investigators will include a mixture of youth who represent different ages, sexes, genders, sexual orientations, races, dwellings, and school/employment status.

Conditions

Chronic Pain

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (6)

• Acceptability

  This will be assessed using the Acceptability e-Scale administered at T2 and assessed during the post-implementation qualitative interview. The minimum value is 1 and the maximum value is 5. Higher scores on the Acceptability e-Scale indicate a better outcome.

  8 weeks

• Adoption (i.e.,rate of uptake of the Power over Pain Portal)

  Characterized via the user-level analytics of interactions with each feature. The benchmark will be 75% of users completing 3/4 portal assessment and accessing ≥ portal intervention.

  8 weeks

• Appropriateness (i.e., perceived fit and compatibility of the Power over Pain Portal to the needs of users)

  Assessed via the post-implementation qualitative interview.

  8 weeks

• Portal Feasibility as assessed by the extent to which the Power over Pain Portal can be used as planned

  Assessed using frequency counts and percentages of types/severity of problems encountered via monthly audit of technical support tickets

  8 weeks

• Portal Feasibility as assessed by the extent to which the Power over Pain Portal can be used as planned

  Assessed via characterization of the severity of encountered issues on the Power over Pain portal

  8 weeks

• Fidelity

  Characterized by intervention use analytics.

  8 weeks

Secondary Outcomes (5)

• Client outcomes

  8 weeks

• Client outcomes

  8 weeks

• Client outcomes

  8 weeks

• Client outcomes

  8 weeks

• Client outcomes

  8 weeks

Interventions

Power over Pain Portal BEHAVIORAL

Youth from different ages, sexes, gender, sexual orientations, races, dwelling and school/employment status will receive access to the portal for 2 months. The portal consists of self-assessment tools (bi-weekly check-ins to provide users with feedback on their mood, anxiety, pain, and sleep and guide decision making on choice of interventions), evidence-based virtual educational (pain neuroscience) and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) pain interventions that are delivered in a stepped care manner based on participant needs/preference.

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 12 Years - 18 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Participants will be recruited from a community-based sample of 100 youth with chronic pain using respondent-driven sampling (RDS), a network-based (i.e. snowball-type) method wherein a diverse group of youth with chronic pain ("seeds") provide study information to members of their social networks As per RDS recommendations, the "seeds" will be sociodemographically diverse, live in a variety of geographical areas, and be "high energy sociometric stars" who are committed to the study goals (i.e., our diverse youth advisory group). this strategy will seek to maximize variability in age, sex, gender, ethnicity, SES and rurality. This study focuses on youth marginalized by membership in racialized groups, SES as defined by neighbourhood, rural/urban status, sex and gender, and sexual orientation. Those belonging to a racialized group, living in a low SES neighbourhood, and/or rural location will be considered marginalized.

You may qualify if:

• Experience chronic pain
• Speak and read English
• Access to Internet / Smartphone (or will be loaned study phone with data plan)
• Intend to use the portal for 2 months

You may not qualify if:

• Youth self-reports:
• Receiving tertiary care or are on waitlists for tertiary care paediatric chronic pain programs
• Have moderate to severe cognitive impairment that may impact their ability to understand and use the Power over Pain Portal or complete self-reported outcomes
• Have untreated major psychiatric illness (e.g., anorexia, psychosis) and/or active suicidality at the time of screening

Sponsors & Collaborators

• The Hospital for Sick Children: lead
• Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR): collaborator

Study Sites (1)

The Hospital for Sick Children

Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1X8, Canada

RECRUITING

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Chronic Pain

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Pain; Neurologic Manifestations; Signs and Symptoms; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms

Central Study Contacts

Jennifer N Stinson, RN, PhD

CONTACT

416-813-7654; jennifer.stinson@sickkids.ca

Chitra Lalloo, PhD

CONTACT

416-813-7654; chitra.lalloo@sickkids.ca

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: OTHER
• Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Clinician Scientist, Clinical Nurse Specialist/NP

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: September 13, 2023
• First Posted: October 11, 2023
• Study Start: October 31, 2022
• Primary Completion: September 30, 2025
• Study Completion: September 30, 2025
• Last Updated: July 2, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-06

Locations

CA (1)