Patient Actor Training to Improve HIV Services for Adolescents in Kenya

NCT ID: NCT02928900

Last Updated: 2024-12-09

Study Results

Results available

Outcome measurements, participant flow, baseline characteristics, and adverse events have been published for this study.

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Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

24 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2016-09-26

Study Completion Date

2021-03-31

Brief Summary

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The goal of this study is to develop and evaluate a clinical training intervention utilizing standardized patient actors to improve communication and interpersonal skills of health care workers who serve HIV-infected adolescents and youth in Kenya, resulting in increased engagement in HIV care. The effect of the intervention on retention in care will be evaluated in a stepped-wedge randomized controlled trial at 24 HIV care and treatment facilities.

Detailed Description

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Adolescents and youth have the highest HIV incidence rates compared to any other age strata. Inadequate provision of accessible and acceptable HIV testing, counseling, and treatment services has been cited as a barrier to uptake of and retention in HIV care in this population.

The "SPEED" study aims to develop and evaluate a clinical training intervention utilizing Standardized Patient (SP) actors to improve communication and interpersonal skills of health care workers (HCWs) who work with adolescents and youth (ages 10-24), resulting in increased engagement in HIV care in Kenya. This intervention includes a series of role plays between HCW participants and professional Kenyan actors, followed by feedback and debriefing sessions. The hypothesis is that SP encounters will increase HCW confidence and capacity to facilitate HIV status disclosure and provide supportive interactions with HIV-infected youth, which will in turn increase uptake and improve retention in HIV services among adolescents and youth.

The pilot phase (Aim 1) will consist of developing patient case scripts specific to adolescent HIV-related care and counseling needs and establishing HCW competency scores. To evaluate the intervention, a cluster randomized controlled stepped-wedge trial will be conducted in 24 HIV care and treatment facilities to assess the impact of SP encounters on the proportion of adolescents and youth patients retained in care at HIV treatment facilities in Kenya (Aim 2). Finally, the cost effectiveness and cost utility of the SP intervention will be determined (Aim 3). The estimated study duration is five years.

The primary outcomes from Aim 1 are final scripts and pass/fail scores for use in SP encounters. The primary outcome for the randomized controlled trial (RCT) (Aim 2) is retention in care among HIV-positive adolescents and youth, based on electronic medical records data. Secondary outcomes will include satisfaction (patients and HCWs), HCW competency in youth- friendly counseling, antiretroviral therapy adherence, and viral suppression. For the cost effectiveness and cost utility analyses (Aim 3), the cost per additional HIV-infected adolescent/youth retained in care and the cost per additional life year saved and disability-adjusted life averted will be estimated.

Conditions

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HIV/AIDS

Keywords

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Adolescents Clinical training HIV care and treatment Africa

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

CROSSOVER

Stepped wedge cluster RCT
Primary Study Purpose

HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Intervention period

In this stepped-wedge trial design, the experimental arm refers to the time period when the study sites receive the clinician training intervention. The intervention is a clinician training using standardized patient actors to improve communication and empathy skills of health care providers who serve HIV-positive adolescents and youth.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Clinician training intervention

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

This intervention is a clinician training using SP actors to improve communication and empathy skills of HIV care providers who serve HIV-positive adolescents and youth in Kenya.

Control period

In this stepped-wedge trial design, the no intervention arm refers to the time period before the study sites receive the clinician training intervention, during which standard of care is provided.

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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Clinician training intervention

This intervention is a clinician training using SP actors to improve communication and empathy skills of HIV care providers who serve HIV-positive adolescents and youth in Kenya.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

Facilities:

* HIV care and treatment facilities in Kenya with ≥40 adolescents currently in HIV care
* EMR data systems
* No concurrent adolescent interventions

Adolescent patient records:

* Records of adolescents and youth ages 10-24
* Enrollment in HIV care and treatment at one of the study facilities

Adolescent satisfaction surveys:

* Patients ages 10-24 seeking counseling or treatment services at trial site who are HIV-infected
* Willing and able to provide informed consent or assent based on age and presence of a caregiver.
* Reside in Kenya

Health care workers:

* \>18 years of age
* Employed at trial site in clinical care for at least three months and/or have a 1 year contract (i.e. not temporary staff)
* Provide clinical services to adolescents
* Reside in Kenya

* If anything would prevent the complete conduct of the training intervention at that site and/or the collection of outcome measures

Adolescents and health care worker surveys:

• If an individual has conditions that would place them at increased risk or preclude the individual's full compliance with or completion of the study

Exclusion Criteria

Facilities:
Minimum Eligible Age

10 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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University of Nairobi

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

University of Washington

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Pamela Kohler

Assistant Professor, Global Health and Nursing

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Pamela Kohler, PhD, MPH, RN

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Washington

Dalton Wamalwa, MMed, MPH

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

University of Nairobi

Locations

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HIV care facility 6

Homa Bay, , Kenya

Site Status

HIV care facility 3

Kiambu, , Kenya

Site Status

HIV care facility 4

Kiambu, , Kenya

Site Status

HIV care facility 5

Kisumu, , Kenya

Site Status

HIV care facility 1

Nairobi, , Kenya

Site Status

HIV care facility 2

Nairobi, , Kenya

Site Status

Countries

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Kenya

References

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Kohler PK, Mugo C, Wilson KS, Moraa H, Onyango A, Tapia K, Pike K, Mburu C, Nduati M, Guthrie B, Richardson BA, Owens T, Bukusi D, Inwani I, John-Stewart G, Wamalwa D. Simulated patient training to improve youth engagement in HIV care in Kenya: A stepped wedge cluster randomized controlled trial. PLOS Glob Public Health. 2023 Apr 19;3(4):e0001765. doi: 10.1371/journal.pgph.0001765. eCollection 2023.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 37074998 (View on PubMed)

Wilson K, Onyango A, Mugo C, Guthrie B, Slyker J, Richardson B, John-Stewart G, Inwani I, Bukusi D, Wamalwa D, Kohler P. Kenyan HIV Clinics With Youth-Friendly Services and Trained Providers Have a Higher Prevalence of Viral Suppression Among Adolescents and Young Adults: Results From an Observational Study. J Assoc Nurses AIDS Care. 2022 Jan-Feb 01;33(1):45-53. doi: 10.1097/JNC.0000000000000302.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 34939987 (View on PubMed)

Wilson KS, Mugo C, Bukusi D, Inwani I, Wagner AD, Moraa H, Owens T, Babigumira JB, Richardson BA, John-Stewart GC, Slyker JA, Wamalwa DC, Kohler PK. Simulated patient encounters to improve adolescent retention in HIV care in Kenya: study protocol of a stepped-wedge randomized controlled trial. Trials. 2017 Dec 28;18(1):619. doi: 10.1186/s13063-017-2266-z.

Reference Type DERIVED
PMID: 29282109 (View on PubMed)

Provided Documents

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Document Type: Study Protocol and Statistical Analysis Plan

View Document

Other Identifiers

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STUDY00002035

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id