Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training for Public Safety Personnel (PSP) With Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)

McMaster University

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Treatments: Behavioral: Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training (TI-GMT); Behavioral: Goal Management Training (GMT)

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06354361

17440

Details and patient eligibility

About

Goal Management Training (GMT) is a program designed to help improve cognitive functioning. For this study, researchers have worked closely with the developers of this program to create a modified version called Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training (TI-GMT), that is more sensitive to the needs of public safety personnel (PSP) diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The goal of this clinical trial is to find out how effective this modified, Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training program is for public safety personnel diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, in comparison to the standard Goal Management Training program.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

1. Does Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training result in better neuropsychological functioning and greater reductions in the severity of PTSD symptoms when compared to standard Goal Management Training?
2. Does Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training result in self-reported improvements in cognitive functioning and the overall ability to function (including intent to return to work, and/or intent to stay at work, reductions in disability status, etc.) when compared to standard Goal Management Training?
3. Does Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training continue to benefit individuals three months after treatment?

Participants will:

• complete three separate assessments before starting the treatment - a clinical interview to evaluate symptoms, a cognitive assessment, and completing a set of questionnaires
• participate in a nine-week group treatment program (one day a week for two hours)
• complete three separate assessments after completing the treatment - a clinical interview to evaluate symptoms, a cognitive assessment, and completing a set of questionnaires
• complete three separate assessments three months after completing the treatment - a clinical interview to evaluate symptoms, a cognitive assessment, and completing a set of questionnaires

Enrollment: 64 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18 to 65 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Inclusion Criteria - participants must:

• be fluent in English
• reside in Ontario
• be public safety personnel (e.g. police officer, corrections officer, probation or parole officer, firefighter, search and rescue, paramedic, nurse, dispatcher)
• be able to provide written informed consent
• meet criteria on the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) for a provisional diagnosis of PTSD (cut-off score of >30), administered during screening
• be able to attend regular online, 2-hour sessions once a week for 9 weeks, and be willing to complete the pre- and post- treatment assessments
• have access to a smart phone, tablet, or computer with a working microphone and camera, and have reliable and consistent internet

Exclusion Criteria:

• daily or almost daily use of benzodiazepines
• daily or almost daily use of narcotics
• diagnosed with alcohol use disorder OR substance use disorder in the past 12 months
• meet criteria on the Mini-International Neuropsychiatric Interview (M.I.N.I.) for diagnosis of alcohol use disorder OR substance use disorder
• history of moderate-to-severe brain injury and/or loss of consciousness with prolonged effects that interfere with daily functioning at school, work, or family unit
• history of neurological disorder(s) that may impact ability to participate in the study
• diagnosis of psychotic disorder(s) or bipolar disorder(s)
• diagnosis of neurodevelopmental disorder(s) that may impact ability to participate in the study
• other conditions/impairments/considerations that may interfere with completion of study tasks
• previous participation in Goal Management Training
• receiving treatment with anti-cholinergic medication, anti-psychotic medication, or psychostimulants
• had electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) within the past year
• currently engaged in a trauma-specific intervention that may impact the findings of the current study such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), Prolonged Exposure (PE), etc.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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64 participants in 2 patient groups

Trauma-Informed GMT (TI-GMT; offered online)

Experimental group

Description:

Participants randomly assigned to the TI-GMT condition will be asked to attend nine weekly, 2-hour virtual group sessions of TI-GMT via Zoom for Healthcare, a PHIPA-compliant video conferencing platform. Each group will consist of 1 or 2 facilitators and up to 10 participants.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Trauma-Informed Goal Management Training (TI-GMT)

Standard GMT (GMT; offered online)

Active Comparator group

Description:

Participants randomly assigned to the GMT condition will be asked to attend nine weekly, 2-hour virtual group sessions of GMT via Zoom for Healthcare, a PHIPA-compliant video conferencing platform. Each group will consist of 1 or 2 facilitators and up to 10 participants.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Goal Management Training (GMT)