The Resilient Minds Program in Fire Departments

Trauma Clinical Trial

Official title:

Assessing the Impact of the Resilient Minds Program in Fire Departments

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Enrolling by invitation

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03401684
• Other study ID #: 2017-4390-GRA
• Status: Enrolling by invitation
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: January 25, 2018
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2021

Study information

• Verified date: September 2021
• Source: McMaster University
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The purpose of the study is to assess the impact of a mental health training program in volunteer and career firefighters.

Description:

THE PROBLEM: Firefighters are frequently exposed to distressing events, or critical incidents such as motor vehicle accidents, burnt bodies, failed rescue attempts, threats to one's own life, and completed suicides that can trigger posttraumatic stress reactions. Previous research show that first responders and other public safety personnel report frequent exposure to traumatic events and are at increased risk for mental health illnesses.

THE STUDY OBJECTIVE: To assess the impact of a mental health training program in volunteer and career firefighters.

THE STUDY SAMPLE: 600 firefighters: 300 Prince Edward Island volunteer or career firefighters, 300 Vancouver career firefighters

INTERVENTION: Vancouver Fire & Rescue Services and the Canadian Mental Health Association-Vancouver Fraser co-developed a new program called, "Resilient Minds-Building the Psychological Health of Fire Fighters." The Resilient Minds training will educate firefighters about the effects of trauma, how to recognize signs of mental health illness and how to access support after critical events. It also trains firefighters to recognize mental health and addictions in co-workers and how to facilitate their help-seeking.

OUTCOMES: The impact of the program will be assessed by pre- and post-program surveys, 3-month, 6-month, 12-month follow-up surveys.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Enrolling by invitation
• Enrollment: 600
• Est. completion date: December 31, 2021
• Est. primary completion date: June 30, 2021
• Accepts healthy volunteers: No
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• 18 years and older

• can read, understand, speak English

• career or volunteer firefighters in PEI participating in Resilient Minds program

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Critical Incident
• Mental Disorders
• Mental Illness
• Trauma

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Resilient Minds
The program is designed: 1) to decrease the risk of developing a stress disorder or other mental illnesses due to workplace incidents and/or unhealthy stress; 2) to mitigate the negative impacts of mental illness and trauma through early recognition and early intervention; 3) to support the public while on the frontline; and 4) to improve the psychological health of fire staff while cultivating resilience and enhancing quality of life.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Canada	Charlottetown Fire Department	Charlottetown	Prince Edward Island
Canada	East River Fire Department	Mount Stewart	Prince Edward Island
Canada	Crossroads Fire Department	Stratford	Prince Edward Island
Canada	Summerside Fire Department	Summerside	Prince Edward Island
Canada	Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services	Vancouver	British Columbia

Sponsors (8)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
McMaster University	Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), Canadian Mental Health Association, British Columbia, Canadian Mental Health Association, Prince Edward Island, Canadian Mental Health Association, Vancouver-Fraser, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, University of Western Ontario, Canada, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Canada, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Other	Traumatic Life Events Checklist	Survey on lifetime experience with "difficult or stressful things"	3 months
Other	PTSD Checklst	Survey on PTSD symptoms over past month	0-12 months
Other	Public Safety Officer Stress	Survey on stress from being first responder (past 6 months)	0-12 months
Other	Suicidal Behavioural	Survey on suicidal behaviours	0-12 months
Other	Anxiety	Survey on anxiety symptoms (past 2 weeks)	0-12 months
Other	Depression	Survey on mood symptoms (past 2 weeks)	0-12 months
Primary	Mental Health Knowledge	Survey on mental health knowledge (unit of measure = 5-point Likert Scale, "Agree Strongly" to "Disagree Strongly")	0-12 months
Primary	Knowledge Retention	Survey on retention of program material (unit of measure = 5-point Likert scale, "Not much" to "A Lot")	0-12 months
Primary	Work Stress	Survey on factors that contribute to work stress (unit of measure = 5-point Likert scale, "Not at all" to "A Lot")	0-12 months
Primary	Impact on support levels	Survey on program's impacts on peer supports and organizational culture (unit of measure = 5-point Likert scale, "No, it seems less supportive" to "Yes, it seems quite a bit more supportive")	0-12 months
Secondary	Self-perceived learning	Survey on self-perceived learning about psychological trauma and/or mental health challenges (unit of measure = 4-point Likert scale, "Very true" to "Not true")	0-12 months
Secondary	Helpfulness of training	Survey of helpfulness of training (unit of measure = Yes or No response)	0-12 months
Secondary	Utilization of training	Survey on intent and actual usage of information or skills learned from program (unit of measure = Yes or No response)	0-12 months
Secondary	Critical incidents exposure and impact	Survey on exposures to difficult or stressful things (unit of measure = ratings of frequency and impact on life)	0 months
Secondary	Resilience	Survey on mental resiliency (unit of measure = 5-point Likert scale, "Strongly Agree" to "Strongly Disagree")	0-12 months