NCT04511156: EQUIP-FHS

Ensuring Quality in Psychological Support-Foundational Helping Skills

Completed NA Last updated 28 September 2022

What this trial tests

NA trial testing Foundational Helping Skills in Psychological Distress in 300 participants. Completed in 31 January 2021.

Timeline

20 October 2020

Primary endpoint
31 January 2021

31 January 2021

Quick facts

Lead sponsor	George Washington University
Phase	NA
Status	Completed
Study type	INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation	na
Design	single group
Masking	none
Primary purpose	health services research
Enrollment	300
Start date	20 October 2020
Primary completion	31 January 2021
Estimated completion	31 January 2021
Sites	3 locations across Peru, Uganda, Nepal

Drugs / interventions tested

• Foundational Helping Skills

Conditions studied

• Psychological Distress — all drugs for Psychological Distress →

Sponsor

George Washington University

Who can join

18 and older, any sex, with Psychological Distress. Patients with the condition only — healthy volunteers not accepted.

Sponsor's own description

There is lack of feasible and effective curricula that can rapidly be taught on basic mental health and psychosocial helping skills. Through the World Health Organization Ensuring Quality in Psychological Support initiative, a curriculum has been developed focusing on common factors in mental health and psychosocial support, such as verbal and nonverbal communication skills, empathy, rapport building, and promoting hope and expectancy of change. To minimize training burden and maximize effectiveness, this has been designed as a competency-based training wherein target competencies are evaluated throughout the training so that it can tailored to trainees preexisting skills, rather than using a one-size-fits-all approach to the training. The training duration and content is modular and flexible, with approximately 16 hours of modules content. The investigator's goal is to conduct a mixed-methods evaluation of the foundational helping skills program. In three countries, Nepal, Peru, and Uganda, two trainers (total n=6 across countries) and 36 service providers (total n=108 across countries) without prior training in mental health and psychosocial support skills will receive the training. Their competency in foundational helping skills will be evaluated prior to training using an objective structured clinical examination approach with standardized role plays using trained raters and actor (i.e., standardized clients). Role play ratings will be made using the ENhancing Assessment of Common Therapeutic factors. In addition, trainees knowledge and perceived self-efficacy in foundational helping skills will be evaluated pre- and post-training. Trainers and trainees will also participate in qualitative interviews regarding feasibility, acceptability, and perceived benefit of the foundational helping skills program. A mixed methods evaluation of the foundational helping skills curriculum will help to inform further revision of the materials on the Ensuring Quality in Psychological Support platform. Determination of the change in skills, knowledge, and self-efficacy will identify effective components of the platform and areas for further refinement. Ultimately, an effective training program in foundational helping skills will contribute to improved health, psychological, and social services around the world.

Publications & conference data

1 peer-reviewed publication reference this trial (live from Europe PMC):

1. A mixed methods evaluation of a World Health Organization competency-based training package for foundational helping skills among pre-service and in-service health workers in Nepal, Peru and Uganda.
   Pedersen GA, Shrestha P, Akellot J, Sepulveda A, et al · · 2023 · cited 11× · PMID 37854401 · DOI 10.1017/gmh.2023.43