MILESTONE - MobILe and tEchnological SoluTions for OccupatioNal drivErs

Hasselt University

Status: Active, not recruiting

Conditions: Healthy

Treatments: Behavioral: Conventional intervention; Behavioral: Personalized tailored feedback; Behavioral: Real-time triggers; Behavioral: Real-time triggers + Personalized tailored feedback; Behavioral: App-supported exercise therapy

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06394141

HBC.2021.0387 (Other Grant/Funding Number)

MILESTONE

Details and patient eligibility

About

Professional drivers in freight transport often experience difficult, exhausting and stressful working conditions due to various reasons: irregular sleep patterns, uncertainty in traffic, frequently changing schedules, busy schedules, a lot of time away from home, etc. These working conditions can lead to significant health problems with a significant impact on road safety. According to the International Road Transport Union, Europe is currently facing the most acute driver shortage in decades; which threatens the continued growth of the road transport sector, and its ability to provide solutions to expected volume growth. Technology will play an important role in making road transport safer and more efficient. MILESTONE's overall objective is to develop and test technological interventions which are expected to reduce the difficult working conditions, stress, negative health effects of professional drivers.

Full description

The overall objective of MILESTONE is to develop and test technological interventions to reduce the difficult working conditions, stress, negative health effects of professional drivers.

1. Understanding the impact of personal state and contextual stress on driving behavior and road safety, and aims to analyze the relationship between physiological and mental state (e.g., sleep quality, fatigue, sleepiness, stress, thermal comfort), general health status, work-related factors, external stressors, and driving parameters linked to road safety.
2. Developing an intervention to keep drivers within their "stress tolerance zone" (STZ) (personal zone within which stress is acceptable)
3. Analyzing the impact of the MILESTONE interventions for different categories of drivers (long-haul, short-haul and local delivery), compared to an active and passive control group

Enrollment: 160 estimated patients

Sex: All

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Working as long-haul, short-haul, or local delivery driver (in a transport company or self-employed)
• Having a smartphone
• Dutch-speaking

Exclusion criteria

• No excessive alcohol use
• No drugs use
• Not having an infectious disease
• Not being pregnant

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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160 participants in 6 patient groups

Real-time triggers

Experimental group

Description:

The first intervention group (n= 30 professional drivers) will receive real-time triggers related to acute stress and sleepiness/fatigue. The real-time feedback involves giving relevant triggers when exceeding some critical stress values or detecting events of 'energy-takers' based on accurate measurements of mental energy in a fully automated way. The selected triggers will be based on the co-creation workshops with drivers (e.g., auditive, visual) in order to select the most efficient (type or combination of) trigger(s) for the real-time feedback. The warning messages will be tailored to the preferences of the driver (e.g., personalized comfort- and safety-related settings) and aim to generate a warning message/signal meant to alert drivers and prevent they might end up with high stress levels.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Real-time triggers

Personalized tailored feedback

Experimental group

Description:

The second intervention group (n= 30 professional drivers) will receive personalized tailored feedback to reduce chronic stress and sleepiness/fatigue. The advice involves personalized (semi-)automatic feedback to drivers about a reduced stress level via the mobile app with automatic reports, as well as post-intervention during the next work break or at the end of the workday, based on the preferences of the driver. The (semi-)automatic feedback is based on the theory of Stages of Change, by which a driver will only receive relevant feedback based on their attitude and willingness during daily life.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Personalized tailored feedback

Real-time triggers + Personalized tailored feedback

Experimental group

Description:

The third intervention group (n= 30 professional drivers) will receive both real-time feedback related to acute stress and sleepiness/fatigue, as well as personalized tailored feedback related to chronic stress and sleepiness/fatigue, similar as in the first and second intervention groups.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Real-time triggers + Personalized tailored feedback

App-supported exercise therapy

Experimental group

Description:

The fourth intervention group (n= 30 professional drivers) will receive app-supported exercise therapy. The intervention will be based on principles of high-intensity training exercises that focus on the improvement of cardiorespiratory exercise capacity, as well as on the reduction of stress levels during work. Participants will receive instructions via the app to do some short, vigorous exercises adapted to their work environment at regular intervals, e.g., bending-and-stretching exercises with a weight in their hands, walking up and down the stairs of their vehicle for a few minutes, etc.

Treatment:

Behavioral: App-supported exercise therapy

Conventional intervention

Active Comparator group

Description:

The active control group (n= 20 professional drivers) will get a conventional intervention to reduce stress, e.g., mindfulness.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Conventional intervention

Control group

No Intervention group

Description:

The passive control group (n= 20 professional drivers) will get no intervention and will continue as normal without receiving any feedback.