Clinical Research Directory

Stress Management and Meditative Movements for Asian Americans With Depression and Physical Symptoms

Many Asian Americans with depression also struggle with physical symptoms-such as pain, fatigue, or other forms of bodily discomfort-that occur at the same time. Right now, there is no proven treatment that effectively addresses both the depression and these physical symptoms together. This study will test whether it is practical, acceptable, and safe to combine the Stress Management and Resiliency Training (SMART) program with meditative movements for people who have both major depression and these distressing physical symptoms.

Precarity and Reduction of Its Impact on the Mental Health of Health Students

Student financial insecurity has become a major public health and societal issue affecting a growing proportion of young adults in higher education, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and more recently by inflation. Health students may be particularly exposed because of the demanding and lengthy nature of their training, often combined with limited opportunities for paid work due to hospital placements and academic workload. A national study conducted in 2024 by the Unit Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale U1073 under the supervision of the Conférence Nationale des Doyens de Médecine among more than 12,000 health students showed that 12% experienced severe financial insecurity, characterized by insufficient monthly resources, recurrent bank overdrafts, and frequent food deprivation, while 20% reported moderate insecurity. Financial insecurity was strongly associated with anxiety, depression, and emotional exhaustion, while vulnerable students were also more likely to forgo healthcare, including psychological consultations, for financial reasons. This vicious circle between financial hardship and mental health may compromise academic success and justifies targeted intervention. Although support systems such as Santé Psy Étudiant and free psychological consultations at the faculty already exist, they remain underused because of stigma, insufficient information, or perceived barriers to access. The PRISMES project proposes a participatory, adaptive, and real-world intervention designed to improve mental health support for financially vulnerable health students. Students directly participate in the co-construction of interventions together with researchers, student associations, health professionals, academic representatives, and a sociologist involved in understanding social determinants, mental health representations, and barriers to participation. Three intervention formats will initially be proposed, Three types of interventions are offered to students. Intervention I consists of four individual psychological consultations. Intervention II includes two collective workshops focused on stress and budget management, combined with two sophrology sessions. Intervention III comprises one psychological consultation and two collective workshops on stress and budget management.. This non-randomized design reflects real-life implementation conditions and improves future transferability. The main objective is to provide concrete support to financially vulnerable students by improving well-being, mental health, and knowledge of available support systems. Secondary objectives are to evaluate intervention effects on anxiety, depression, stress, quality of life, and emotional exhaustion, to adapt interventions according to feedback, and to improve awareness and use of social and health support services. A mixed-method design will combine quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative assessments will be conducted monthly during the three months following the first intervention and again three months after the final intervention. Validated questionnaires will assess perceived stress (Cohen scale), anxiety and depression (HAD score), quality of life, and emotional exhaustion (MBI-SS). Qualitative interviews and focus groups conducted at the end of the intervention will explore perceived benefits, barriers, and implementation factors among students and professionals. The adaptive design allows continuous adjustment according to interim findings. For example, if attendance is limited by timetable constraints, sessions may be rescheduled. Feedback loops involving participants and stakeholders will guide iterative improvement. Eligible participants are health students aged 18-30 enrolled at Université de Rouen Normandie presenting at least one indicator of financial insecurity: insufficient monthly resources, recurrent overdraft, or frequent food deprivation. Students currently receiving psychological follow-up are excluded. Assuming a reduction in anxiety prevalence from 55% to 45%, 88 participants are required; with 20% loss to follow-up, 110 students will be included. Among approximately 4,500 health students in Rouen, about 540 are estimated to experience severe insecurity and 900 moderate insecurity, ensuring strong feasibility. PRISMES aims to generate directly transferable recommendations for university support policies and improve resilience, well-being, and academic success.

Intervention to Reduce HIV Related Stigma Among Pregnant and Postpartum Women

Purpose of this Study: The main purpose of this study is to adapt an existing evidence-based intervention, Project Accept Post-Test Support Services (PTSS) Module 3, specifically for pregnant and postpartum women living with HIV (WLWH) in Ghana. The adapted intervention aims to reduce HIV-related stigma and improve adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and mental health symptoms, such as depression and anxiety, among this vulnerable population. Why was this study done? (Background): HIV-related stigma is a major obstacle for women living with HIV, particularly pregnant women in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), hindering their engagement in HIV care and adherence to ART. This contributes to poor health outcomes, including inadequate viral suppression, depression, and an ongoing risk of HIV transmission to their children and sexual partners. While effective HIV stigma-reduction interventions exist for the general adult population living with HIV, there is a critical lack of tailored interventions for pregnant and postpartum WLWH in SSA. This study addresses this gap by adapting a proven intervention (Project Accept PTSS Module 3), which has shown success in reducing stigma and improving outcomes in other populations, for this specific group in Ghana, where HIV-related stigma remains disproportionately high. Who participated in this study? (Target Population): This study will involve several groups: Pregnant and postpartum women living with HIV: 30 women will participate in in-depth interviews to share their experiences with stigma and HIV care. HIV care providers: 20 providers will participate in in-depth interviews to offer their perspectives on stigma and care provision. Stakeholders: This group will include HIV care providers, program administrators/directors, and pregnant and postpartum women. They will collaborate in the iterative process of adapting the intervention. Pregnant women living with HIV (for feasibility testing): 90 pregnant women will be randomized, with half receiving the adapted intervention and half receiving standard care, to assess the intervention's feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary impact. What happened in this study? (Intervention/Methods): This 3-year study has three main aims: Understanding Stigma Experiences: Researchers will describe the experiences of stigma and HIV care from the perspectives of pregnant and postpartum WLWH and compare them with providers' experiences. This will involve longitudinal data collection and in-depth interviews to understand how stigma affects women's health, clinical care (e.g., provider discrimination, ART adherence), and mental health over time. Intervention Adaptation: Project Accept PTSS Module 3 will be adapted specifically for pregnant and postpartum WLWH using the ADAPT-ITT framework. This involves an iterative process with stakeholders to ensure the intervention is culturally and gender-appropriate, enhancing its acceptability for the target population. Feasibility and Preliminary Impact Assessment: The study will assess the feasibility and acceptability of the adapted intervention. Ninety pregnant women will be randomly assigned to either receive the intervention or continue with standard care. Researchers will then estimate the intervention's potential impact on anticipated and internalized HIV-related stigma (primary outcomes), as well as ART adherence and symptoms of anxiety and depression (secondary outcomes). What were the results of this study? (Outcomes): As a preliminary and adaptation study, this research aims to: Provide essential data to inform and justify a larger, fully-powered randomized clinical trial to rigorously evaluate the adapted intervention's effectiveness. Identify potential indicators associated with mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Develop a model that can be applied to other Sub-Saharan African countries facing similar challenges. Foster new collaborations focused on HIV-related stigma among women in Ghana. Build research capacity among researchers in sub-Saharan Africa. What are the side effects of the treatments in this study? (Safety): This study focuses on a behavioral intervention (a support and counseling module) rather than a drug or medical treatment. Therefore, typical physical side effects associated with medications are not expected. The intervention aims to improve well-being and health outcomes by addressing psychosocial factors. Any adverse events or discomfort experienced by participants will be carefully monitored and addressed in accordance with ethical guidelines. What are the conclusions of this study? (Implications/Future Plans): The findings from this study are expected to demonstrate the feasibility and potential impact of a culturally and gender-tailored HIV stigma-reduction intervention for pregnant and postpartum WLWH in Ghana. This research will be foundational for launching a larger-scale clinical trial to definitively test the intervention's efficacy.

Developing an Immersive Virtual Reality Platform

This study is a two-stage, mixed-method, pre-test post-test design aimed at developing and testing an immersive VR intervention for new mothers. This research is 2-arm a 4-week prospective randomized clinical trial