Comparison of Social Media-Based and Online Training in Grief Counseling Education

NCT07723170 | Not Yet Recruiting

• 1 other identifier: EBE_ISU_1
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 72
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This randomized trial aims to compare the effectiveness of two digital educational approaches for perinatal grief counseling training among midwives and nurses working in perinatal care settings in Türkiye: a social media-based education program delivered through Instagram and an online education program delivered through Zoom. Both groups will receive the same six-module perinatal grief counseling education content, but through different delivery methods. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of the two study groups. Outcomes will be assessed before the intervention, immediately after completion of the 6-week training program, and 4 weeks after the intervention. The study will evaluate changes in participants' competency and confidence in providing perinatal grief care and compare the sustainability of learning outcomes between the two digital education models.

Conditions

Perinatal Grief; Perinatal Loss; Bereavement

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Perinatal Bereavement Care Competency

  This scale was developed by Shen et al. in 2022 to measure the grief care competence of midwives providing care to women experiencing perinatal death. Gökçek and Keser Özcan established its Turkish validity and reliability. The scale consists of 23 items and has six sub-dimensions: Maintaining Faith, Knowing, Being Together, Maintaining Esteem, Empowerment, and Self-Regulation. Each item is answered using a five-point Likert scale (Strongly Disagree=1, Disagree=2, Undecided=3, Agree=4, Strongly Agree=5), resulting in a minimum score of 23 and a maximum score of 115. Higher scores indicate greater competence in perinatal grief counselling. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the scale ranged from 0.69 to 0.87 for the sub-dimensions and was 0.92 for the entire scale.

  Baseline, immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention, and 4 weeks after the intervention.

• Perinatal Bereavement Care Confidence

  This scale, developed by Kalu et al. in 2019, measures midwives' and nurses' perceived competence in providing care to families experiencing perinatal loss. Dursun and Akkuş conducted the Turkish adaptation and reliability study of the scale. The scale consists of 35 items across four sub-dimensions: knowledge of grief support, grief support skills, self-awareness, and organizational support. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 5=strongly agree). Some statements are reverse scored (e.g., items 7, 11, and 33). Each sub-dimension is evaluated independently, and the total score is not calculated. In the original scale development study, the Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the sub-dimensions ranged from 0.70 to 0.87.

  Baseline, immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention, and 4 weeks after the intervention.

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Participant Evaluation of the Educational Program

  Immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention.

Study Arms (2)

Social Media-Based Education Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in this group will receive a six-week perinatal grief counseling education program through a private Instagram account. Educational content will be delivered using posts, stories, reels, videos, quizzes, and interactive activities.

Behavioral: Social Media-Based Perinatal Grief Counseling Education

Online Education Group

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants in this group will receive the same six-module perinatal grief counseling education program through synchronous Zoom sessions over six weeks. Sessions will include presentations, case discussions, interactive activities, and role-play exercises.

Behavioral: Online Perinatal Grief Counseling Education

Interventions

Social Media-Based Perinatal Grief Counseling Education BEHAVIORAL

A six-week structured perinatal grief counseling education program delivered through Instagram using asynchronous posts, stories, reels, videos, quizzes, and interactive activities.

Social Media-Based Education Group

Online Perinatal Grief Counseling Education BEHAVIORAL

A six-week structured perinatal grief counseling education program delivered through synchronous Zoom sessions, including presentations, case discussions, interactive activities, and role-play exercises.

Online Education Group

Eligibility Criteria

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

You may qualify if:

• Midwives or nurses currently working in perinatal care settings in Türkiye.
• Aged 18 years or older.
• Own a smartphone and have regular internet access.
• Able to actively use Instagram and Zoom.
• Provide informed consent to participate in the study.

You may not qualify if:

• Previous training in perinatal grief counseling.
• Failure to participate regularly in the educational intervention.
• Failure to complete the study assessments.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Istinye University: lead

Study Sites (1)

Istinye University, Faculty of Health Sciences

Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye)

Location

Central Study Contacts

Ayşe İrem PhD Gökçek, Dr

CONTACT

05356476880; gokcek.airem@gmail.com

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: Masking of participants and investigators is not feasible because of the nature of the educational interventions.
• Purpose: HEALTH SERVICES RESEARCH
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Assistant Professor

Model Details: Participants will be randomly assigned in parallel to one of three study arms: social media-based education delivered through Instagram, online education delivered through Zoom, or a wait-list control group. The two intervention groups will receive the same perinatal grief counseling education content through different delivery methods.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: July 20, 2026
• First Posted: July 23, 2026
• Study Start: July 27, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 30, 2026
• Last Updated: July 24, 2026

Record last verified: 2026-07

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

TU (1)