Purpose After Service Through Sport (PASS)

NCT ID: NCT05289882

Last Updated: 2023-05-10

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

WITHDRAWN

Clinical Phase

NA

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2022-09-01

Study Completion Date

2023-06-01

Brief Summary

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The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a gender-sensitized social-connectedness physical activity program in relation to key markers of well-being among military veteran men over 6 months.

Detailed Description

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The transition to civilian life can bring about substantive challenges for military veterans. Particular challenges include a loss of identity, feelings of loneliness and isolation, difficulties with finding and retaining employment, substance misuse, and problems adjusting to very different work and cultural environments. A growing body of scientific evidence also indicates that military veterans are at notable risk of depleted mental health (e.g., depression, suicide ideation).

The study involves broadening the evaluation (e.g., assess its impact on mental and physical health) and reach (e.g. extend to other Canadian cities) of a recently developed pilot program, Purpose After Service through Sport (PASS), which was completed in Vancouver in 2020 and assessed for its feasibility and acceptability. The results from this pilot study revealed that the program was well-received (by both military leadership and veterans themselves), fostered a sense of social connectivity among veterans, resulted in (self-reported) physical and psychological health benefits, and displayed considerable potential for scale up and evaluation using a randomized controlled trial (RCT) design.

The PASS Randomized Trial draws from the empirical evidence related to (a) the mental health benefits of regular physical activity, (b) benefits of group-based programs that foster social connectivity, (c) the importance of, and potential derived from, developing and implementing gender-sensitized programs, and (d) the pilot study described above.

Conditions

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Well-Being (Psychological Flourishing)

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Using Optimal Design Software, and on the basis of 7 observations per participant (in psychological flourishing), 134 participants are required to detect a medium effect size of δ = .50, with Power (1 - β) set at 80%, and p \<.05 with seven time points (baseline, Months 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6). To account for 9 sites across Canada (necessitating 8 dummy variables) requires an additional 80 participants. To further account for 10% attrition, a minimum of n= 238 veteran participants are needed. The study will look to recruit 252 military veterans for study participation. The study will also look to recruit N = 252 currently serving members of the Canadian Armed Forces, although it should be noted that these participants do not constitute the population of primary interest for the trial. On the basis of N = 252 military veterans and N = 252 currently serving military participants the trial will look to recruit a total of N = 504 participants.
Primary Study Purpose

PREVENTION

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors
Personnel who analyze the data collected from the study are not aware of the treatment applied to any given group.

Study Groups

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PASS Program Condition

Participants in this condition will take part in weekly physical activity, augmented with built-in opportunities to socially connect, and be directed to veteran-specific support services and resources.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

PASS Program Condition:

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Participants randomized to this condition will be invited to take part in weekly ball hockey games (once per week), that will last approximately 60 minutes, and will be followed by opportunities to socially connect afterwards. The results of our feasibility study indicated that the PASS program acted as an important conduit to direct participants to other support services and resources (e.g., counseling, career transition centre, employment, education). Military veteran men are often reluctant to access such supports, especially if they attach stigma to such services (e.g., mental health services). At each site, a military veteran will be trained as a facilitator to operate as a conduit to refer participants to the relevant support services and agencies.

Waitlist Control

Those randomized to the wait-list control condition will go about their daily lives for the duration of the 6-month assessment period (following randomization). They will be asked to complete the same measures (and will be remunerated in the same way as those in the PASS program condition, based on the completion of study measures). At the end of the 6-month trial, participants in this condition will have the opportunity to participate in the PASS program.

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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PASS Program Condition:

Participants randomized to this condition will be invited to take part in weekly ball hockey games (once per week), that will last approximately 60 minutes, and will be followed by opportunities to socially connect afterwards. The results of our feasibility study indicated that the PASS program acted as an important conduit to direct participants to other support services and resources (e.g., counseling, career transition centre, employment, education). Military veteran men are often reluctant to access such supports, especially if they attach stigma to such services (e.g., mental health services). At each site, a military veteran will be trained as a facilitator to operate as a conduit to refer participants to the relevant support services and agencies.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Former members of the Canadian (or Allied Forces; e.g., NATO countries) military, or current members of the Canadian military, and not experience any contraindication which might prevent that person from participating in moderate-intensity physical activity.
* Self-identification as a man (if sex at birth is 'female' but participants identify as 'man' they are eligible to participate).
* Have received full dosage of the COVID-19 vaccination (min 2 injections) and must provide proof of vaccination, as this is required to access all active military bases in Canada.
* Be able to read and understand English or French.
* Have access to a computer, tablet, or other device, that has access to the internet.
* Live at, or in close proximity to, one of the nine study locations (Esquimalt, BC; Edmonton, AB, Shilo, MB; Borden, ON; Kingston, ON; Petawawa, ON; Valcartier, QC; Montreal, QC; Gagetown, NB)

Exclusion Criteria

* Not a former member of the Canadian (or Allied Forces; e.g., NATO countries) military, or current member of the Canadian military.
* Unable to participate in moderate-intensity physical activity (as screened via the PAR-Q and ePARmedX), including a lack of ability to receive doctor's clearance for participating in physical activity.
* Unable to speak or read English or French
* Lack of internet access which prevents access to online materials (e.g., questionnaires).
* Participants do not self-identify as 'man'. If participants disclose 'sex' as female but self-identify their gender identity as 'man' they are eligible to participate in the study and we would include their psychological responses in the main analyses. In such an instance, their biological measures (blood draws, blood pressure, and physical fitness tests) would be analyzed separately from those whose sex (male) and gender identity (man) are concordant.
* Not living in proximity to one of the participating sites (in order to take part in the in-person group-based activities).
Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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University of British Columbia

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

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Mark Beauchamp

Professor

Responsibility Role PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

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Mark R Beauchamp, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of British Columbia

Locations

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University of British Columbia

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Site Status

Countries

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Canada

References

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Other Identifiers

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H21-02693

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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