Meditation to Reduce Firefighter Distress

University of Arizona

Status and phase: Enrolling; Phase 2

Conditions: Psychological Distress

Treatments: Behavioral: 10-day meditation intervention; Behavioral: 10-day health education intervention

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06518616

STUDY00003422

Details and patient eligibility

About

The more than one million firefighters in the United States provide critical emergency medical services in communities they serve and are on the front lines of healthcare delivery, including in the post-pandemic world. As a result of exposure to occupational stressors, a high proportion of firefighters experience considerable stress-related burden including psychological distress (i.e., increased features of anxiety and depression). To address this need, this project will test the efficacy of a 10-day meditation intervention (i.e., 10 individual prerecorded audio units delivered by smartphone app) among career firefighters to decrease psychological distress (i.e., anxiety and depression).

Full description

The goal of this study is to test the efficacy of a 10-day meditation intervention (i.e., 10 individual prerecorded audio units delivered by smartphone app) versus an active attention control (i.e., 10-day health education intervention with 10 individual prerecorded audio units delivered by smartphone app) to reduce psychological distress among N=160 career firefighters (to address possible attrition, N=192 firefighters will be consented and enrolled). The following specific aims will guide the research:

Aim 1. Examine whether firefighters' psychological distress (i.e., features of anxiety [primary outcome], depression) is reduced at 10 days, 30 days, and 3 months after the meditation intervention versus an active attention control. Features of anxiety, features of depression will be assessed at baseline (T1), after the 10-day intervention (T2), 30 days later (T3), and 3 months later (T4).

Aim 2: Explore the extent to which reductions in psychological distress from the meditation intervention are mediated by mindfulness and perceived social connection.

Enrollment: 192 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: 1) currently employed as a career firefighter, 2) 18 or older, 3) speak and understand English, and 4) own a smartphone (iPhone or Android) able to download and run the intervention apps.

Exclusionary factors: 1) diagnosis of an illness requiring use of corticosteroids (e.g., asthma), and 2) have ongoing or past regular meditation experience in the last 4 years (i.e. more than two meditation session [completed or attempted] per year either with a group or individually), as determined by the PI.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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192 participants in 2 patient groups

10-day meditation intervention

Experimental group

Description:

prerecorded meditation units, 10 units, one per day, delivered by smartphone app

Treatment:

Behavioral: 10-day meditation intervention

10-day health education intervention

Active Comparator group

Description:

prerecorded health education units, 10 units, one per day, delivered by smartphone app

Treatment:

Behavioral: 10-day health education intervention