A Digital Resilience Intervention for Emergency Medical Service Workers

NCT06861400 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 11-3278-2022
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 83
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Emergency medical service (EMS) workers (i.e., ambulance service providers) experience triple the risk for anxiety, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) compared to the general U.S. population. These mental disorders impact health and well-being across the life course. Thus, there is a critical need for interventions targeting key risk factors that can reduce EMS workers' mental health risk. Chronic stress represents such a risk factor and is a routine feature of the EMS profession due to the demands of providing emergency medical care. Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training (SRR-RAPT) promotes finding positive meaning in stressors by building self-awareness of the coping and regulatory responses used to manage them; evaluating those responses; adapting them based upon their perceived effectiveness; and developing a plan for managing similar stressors in the future based on what can be learned from the current situation. In addition to prompting self-monitoring and active reflection on stressors and coping responses, SRR-RAPT encourages practicing recovery activities that permit a person's stressor induced strain level to return to baseline. The primary objective of the current study is to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and adoptability of SRR-RAPT among EMS personnel. A secondary objective was to examine the intervention's effect on hypothesized mechanisms of action predicted to vary in response to the intervention, as well as consider the intervention's ability to reduce mental health symptoms. It is hypothesized that the intervention will be associated with more positive meaning made, adaptive self-reflection, recovery activities, and recovery experiences, as well as lower levels of mental health symptoms.

Conditions

Feasibility; Acceptability; Adoptability; Meaning Made; Adaptive Self-reflection; Recovery Activities; Recovery Experiences; Post Traumatic Stress Disorder PTSD; Anxiety; Depression

Keywords

Emergency Medical Service Personnel; Psychological Resilience

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (4)

• Time period required to achieve target sample size

  The number of months it takes to recruit the number of participants necessary to reach the target sample size.

  From study initiation until at least 80 participants are recruited, up to 12 months

• Number of participants recruited and randomized each week of the study

  A count of the number of participants who are recruited and randomized each week that the study is taking place.

  From study initiation until at least 80 participants are recruited, up to 12 months

• Acceptability

  Assessed with 3 items asking about respondents' perceptions that the intervention was helpful ("I found that answering the questions about managing stressful experiences and practicing recovery behaviors was helpful"); useful ("I found that answering the questions about managing stressful experiences and practicing recovery behaviors was useful"); and not burdensome ("I found that answering the questions about managing stressful experiences and practicing recovery behaviors was not too burdensome"). Respondents rated each item on a scale ranging from 1 ("Strongly Disagree") to 5 ("Strongly Agree"). Ratings are summed to yield a total daily score.

  Day 8 of the intervention

• Adoptability

  Assessed with 3 items asking about respondents intention to use what they had learned from the intervention in the future ("I will keep using these questions to help manage stressful experiences and practice recovery activities in the future." "I will try to use these questions in the future when managing stressful experiences and trying to practice recovery activities." "I plan to use some of the approaches that I came up with in my responses to the questions about managing stressful experiences and practicing recovery behaviors in the future"). Respondents rate each item on a scale ranging from 1 ("Strongly Disagree") to 5 ("Strongly Agree"). Ratings are summed to yield a total daily score.

  Day 8 of the intervention

Secondary Outcomes (7)

• Meaning Made

  Days 1 to 8 of the intervention

• Adaptive Self-Reflection

  Days 1 to 8 of the intervention

• Recovery Activities

  Days 1 to 8 of the intervention

• Recovery Experiences

  Days 1 to 8 of the intervention

• PTSD Symptom Severity

  Days 1 to 8 of the intervention

Study Arms (2)

Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training (SRR-RAPT)

EXPERIMENTAL

Receives Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training (SRR-RAPT)

Behavioral: Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training

Usual Care

NO INTERVENTION

Does not receive SRR-RAPT.

Interventions

Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training BEHAVIORAL

Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training (SRR-RAPT) promotes finding positive meaning in stressors by building self-awareness of the coping and regulatory responses used to manage them; evaluating those responses; adapting them based upon their perceived effectiveness; and developing a plan for managing similar stressors in the future based on what can be learned from the current situation. In addition to prompting self-monitoring and active reflection on stressors and coping responses, SRR-RAPT encourages practicing recovery activities that permit a person's stressor induced strain level to return to baseline. SRR-RAPT is administered daily for 8 consecutive days.

Self-Reflective Resilience-Recovery Activity Promotion Training (SRR-RAPT)

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Full-time or part-time employee at an emergency medical service agency
• ≥ 18 years of age
• ≥ 1 emergency medical service shift scheduled in the next 8 days from recruitment date.

You may not qualify if:

• Not a full-time or part-time employee at an emergency medical service agency
• \< 18 years of age
• \< 1 emergency medical service shift scheduled in the next 8 days from recruitment date.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Syracuse University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Syracuse University

Syracuse, New York, 13244, United States

Location

Related Publications (6)

• Cella D, Choi SW, Condon DM, Schalet B, Hays RD, Rothrock NE, Yount S, Cook KF, Gershon RC, Amtmann D, DeWalt DA, Pilkonis PA, Stone AA, Weinfurt K, Reeve BB. PROMIS(R) Adult Health Profiles: Efficient Short-Form Measures of Seven Health Domains. Value Health. 2019 May;22(5):537-544. doi: 10.1016/j.jval.2019.02.004.

  PMID: 31104731 BACKGROUND

• Zuromski KL, Ustun B, Hwang I, Keane TM, Marx BP, Stein MB, Ursano RJ, Kessler RC. Developing an optimal short-form of the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5). Depress Anxiety. 2019 Sep;36(9):790-800. doi: 10.1002/da.22942. Epub 2019 Jul 29.

  PMID: 31356709 BACKGROUND

• Sonnentag S, Fritz C. The Recovery Experience Questionnaire: development and validation of a measure for assessing recuperation and unwinding from work. J Occup Health Psychol. 2007 Jul;12(3):204-21. doi: 10.1037/1076-8998.12.3.204.

  PMID: 17638488 BACKGROUND

• Pressman SD, Matthews KA, Cohen S, Martire LM, Scheier M, Baum A, Schulz R. Association of enjoyable leisure activities with psychological and physical well-being. Psychosom Med. 2009 Sep;71(7):725-32. doi: 10.1097/PSY.0b013e3181ad7978. Epub 2009 Jul 10.

  PMID: 19592515 BACKGROUND

• Cooper C, Katona C, Livingston G. Validity and reliability of the brief COPE in carers of people with dementia: the LASER-AD Study. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2008 Nov;196(11):838-43. doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e31818b504c.

  PMID: 19008735 BACKGROUND

• Carver CS. You want to measure coping but your protocol's too long: consider the brief COPE. Int J Behav Med. 1997;4(1):92-100. doi: 10.1207/s15327558ijbm0401_6.

  PMID: 16250744 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Combat Disorders; Anxiety Disorders; Depression

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Stress Disorders, Traumatic; Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Mental Disorders; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Associate Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: February 24, 2025
• First Posted: March 6, 2025
• Study Start: June 28, 2023
• Primary Completion: December 20, 2023
• Study Completion: December 20, 2023
• Last Updated: March 10, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)