Refugees and asylum seekers (RAS) face numerous stressors and adversities which put them at risk for developing mental health problems. However, access to adequate mental health care in host countries is limited. To address this problem, the World Health Organization (WHO) introduced Problem Management Plus (PM+), a short, low-intensity psychological intervention administered by non-professionals, aiming to alleviate common mental disorders among crisis-affected communities. The objective of this pilot RCT is to assess the feasibility and acceptability of an adapted version of PM+ for refugees and asylum-seekers. This will inform the design of a definitive RCT and implementation study.
Refugees and asylum seekers (RAS) are often exposed not only to potentially traumatic events before and during migration but also to significant post-migration stressors. Due to this combined burden, RAS are at increased risk for developing mental health problems. In accessing mental health care in the host countries, however, they face several barriers including waitlists, stigma and communication difficulties. Consequently, RAS are frequently underdiagnosed and often do not receive adequate medical treatment despite an urgent need. To improve the access to evidence-based psychological interventions, the WHO developed a series of scalable interventions. One of these is Problem Management Plus (PM+), a brief, low-intensity psychological intervention, delivered by paraprofessionals, that addresses common mental disorders in people affected by adversity. PM+ consists of 5 sessions that comprise evidence-based techniques of (a) problem solving, (b) stress management, (c) behavioral activation, and (d) accessing social support. The present study aims at expanding the existing PM+ intervention by providing additional booster sessions and access to a digital support program. PM+ has been proven to be an effective method for reducing mental health problems and improving the psychosocial functioning of people in crisis in various countries and contexts, including Switzerland. Despite its effectiveness, far too little attention has been paid to the successful implementation of such low-intensity psychological interventions into real-world health care systems. The present pilot RCT aims to investigate the feasibility and acceptability of an augmented version of PM+ for refugees and asylum-seekers to inform a full-scale, definitive randomized controlled trial and implementation study. Data will be collected regarding the feasibility and acceptability of all study components, including recruitment, drop-out rate, protocol adherence, study visit attendance and the time burden of parent questionnaires. These data will inform the design of a full scale randomized controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of augmented PM+ in refugees and asylum-seekers.
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE
Enrollment
64
Problem Management Plus (PM+) is a brief, psychological intervention program based on CBT techniques that are empirically supported and formally recommended by the WHO. The full protocol was developed by the WHO and the University of New South Wales, Australia. The manual involves the following empirically supported elements: problem solving plus stress management, behavioural activation, and accessing social support. These elements have been recommended in recent WHO guidelines. Additionally, the original five PM+ sessions will be augmented by additional booster sessions. Participants will receive three 30-45-minutes telephone booster sessions 10, 22, and 34 weeks after the final original PM+ session.
Klinik für Konsiliarpsychiatrie und Psychosomatik, Universitätsspital Zürich
Zurich, Switzerland
Change in psychological distress
Change in psychological distress will be measured with the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL-25). Items are rated on a scale from 1 to 4. Higher scores indicate more pronounced symptom severity.
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline)
Change in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms
Change in posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms will be assessed using the 4-item short form of the PCL-5. Items are rated on a scale from 0 to 4 with higher scores indicating more pronounced symptom severity.
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline), 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
General psychological distress
General psychological distress will be measured with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale - K10 (Kessler et al., 2002), a brief screening questionnaire assessing general psychological distress in the past 30 days. It consists of ten items (e.g., "During the last 30 days, about how often did you feel tired out for no good reason?") rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = "none of the time" to 5 = "all of the time"), before summation (range 10-50).
Time frame: Screening, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline), 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Somatic symptoms
Somatic symptoms will be assessed using the Somatic Symptom Scale (SSS-8). Items are rated on a scale from 0 to 4 with higher scores indicating higher symptom severity.
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline), 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Reduction of post-migration stressors
Changes in post-migration stressors will be assessed using a 9-item version of the Post Migration Living Difficulties Checklist (PMLDC). Items are rated on a scale from 0 to 4 with lower scores representing fewer post-migration stressors.
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline), 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Exposure to potentially traumatic events
Exposure to potentially traumatic events is indexed using a list of seven traumatic experiences. Overall trauma exposure is represented by a count of the number of traumatic event types (ranging from 0 to 7) experienced by each participant; higher scores indicate experience of more forms of traumatic events.
Time frame: Baseline assessment
Level of integration
Level of integration will be measured using the Immigration Policy Lab Integration Index (IPL-24). Items are rated between one and five points. Higher scores indicate more pronounced symptom severity.
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Suicidal Ideation
Suicidal Ideation is measured using the Suicidal Ideation Attribution Scale (SIDAS), a brief measure of severity of suicidal ideation assessing frequency, controllability, closeness to attempt, level of distress associated with the thoughts and impact on daily functioning. It consists of five items rated on a 11-point scale (0 = "Never" to 10 = "Always").
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Change in psychological distress
Change in psychological distress will be measured with the Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL-25). Items are rated on a scale from 1 to 4. Higher scores indicate more pronounced symptom severity.
Time frame: 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
Feasibility of PM+ by the number of dropouts
Monitoring of the dropouts by number of participants
Time frame: Baseline assessment, 3 month FU assessment (3 months after baseline), 6 month FU assessment (6 months after baseline), 12 months FU assessment
This platform is for informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional.