Health-E You Efficacy Trial for Male Adolescents

Johns Hopkins University

Status: Begins enrollment this month

Conditions: Sexually Transmitted Diseases; Sexual Health; Reproductive Health

Treatments: Other: Health-E You app

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other; NIH

Identifiers

NCT06525064

R01HD109141 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

IRB00424416

Details and patient eligibility

About

This study will involve evaluating Health-E You/Salud ìTu™, a web-based, pre-visit mobile app designed to support adolescent male youth and his clinicians in discussing sexual and reproductive health (SRH) topics and care. It will test its efficacy among male patients in clinical settings using a stepped wedge cluster randomized controlled trial design.

Full description

Health-E You is a pre-visit, web-based mobile app designed to support an adolescent male youth and his clinician in discussing SRH topics and care. It is shared with an adolescent patient prior to a clinic visit, and contains initial questions that subsequently provide the patient with individually-tailored health information. In addition, the app provides relevant information to the clinician on patients' SRH to optimize the time together as part of the visit. In total, the app takes approximately 10-15 minutes to complete. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of the Health-E You app among male youth ages 13-21 using a cluster-randomized stepped-wedge design. A participant will be considered to have completed the study if the participant has completed the baseline assessment, worked through the app, an immediate follow-up assessment, and a 2-month post-visit follow-up assessment. The end of the study is defined as completion of the 2-month follow-up assessment. Hypotheses include compared to usual care, app users will have greater improvements in male method use behaviors (i.e., condom use) as well as knowledge about pregnancy and sexually transmitted infection (STI) prevention methods, male method use self-efficacy, improved knowledge about SRH care, self-efficacy talking with a clinician about SRH, beliefs about SRH promotion, and SRH care receipt.

Enrollment: 2,752 estimated patients

Sex: Male

Ages: 13 to 21 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Assigned male sex at birth
• Age 13 to 21 years old
• English and/or Spanish as preferred language to read, listen, and converse
• Self-reported engagement in vaginal and/or anal sex in the past 12 months
• Access to phone or internet for follow-up study activities

Exclusion criteria

• Aged 12 or younger or older than 21
• Primary language other than English or Spanish
• Not able to provide informed consent
• Unable to communicate due to cognitive, mental, language, or other difficulties
• Not sexually active, engaged in oral sex only, or more than 12 months have passed since last vaginal and/or anal sex.
• Previous participation in a Health-E You study activity or the app

Trial design

Primary purpose: Prevention

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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2,752 participants in 2 patient groups

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

When clinics are in the control condition, patients will receive usual care. Before the visit eligible participants will receive a weblink to study information, and if agree to participate, the survey. The participants will not be presented Health-E You content and clinicians will not receive output to prime the visit; the participants will receive usual care as typical. Previously enrolled control males will not be enrolled during intervention periods to maintain the research study's integrity.

Intervention Group

Experimental group

Description:

When clinics are in the intervention condition, all patients presenting for any reason will get a study weblink 24 hours before the visit; walk-ins will get a study link code in clinic. If the participants agree to participate and meet study criteria, the participants will get a survey link and then Health-E You content to complete before the visit. Previously enrolled males will not be enrolled again to maintain the research study's integrity. Thus, participants will only have one opportunity for administration to the Health-E You app. Participants will be considered to have completed the Health-E You app if the participants answer all of the app's initial tailoring questions and receive recommendations for SRH topics to discuss with the clinician. As a technology-based intervention, no direct interactions with interventionists with participants are required.

Treatment:

Other: Health-E You app