Observations of a Brief Online Psychological Intervention Among People Seeking Online Mental Health Services

NCT ID: NCT06178328

Last Updated: 2025-11-19

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Total Enrollment: 50 participants
• Study Classification: OBSERVATIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2023-11-17
• Study Completion Date: 2026-09-30

Brief Summary

Since 2012, the Online Therapy Unit has been offering Internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT). ICBT represents a convenient method for individuals to access care for depression and anxiety. In ICBT, clients receive access to standardized lessons that provide the same information and skills as traditional face-to-face CBT. ICBT courses often span 6-12 weeks. There is now growing evidence that clients with symptoms of depression and anxiety can benefit from a single session brief intervention that offers practical strategies for improving mental health, but the investigators are uncertain about the interest in such a lesson among those seeking online mental health care. The Things You Do Course, therefore, is designed to provide clients with 5 key actions that clients can take to improve their emotional wellbeing.

In this study, the Online Therapy Unit (OTU) is examining how effective the Things You Do Course is in helping clients manage their symptoms of depression and anxiety and improve their emotional wellbeing. The OTU is also exploring the extent to which clients are satisfied with the course, and what factors contribute to improvements in symptoms, as measured by a number of questionnaires. The research will ultimately be used to improve how the OTU will deliver ICBT and to inform whether to include the single session course within existing online mental health service options.

Detailed Description

A scarcity of mental health care practitioners across Canada has resulted in extensive wait times. This issue is compounded by the significant cost associated with accessing psychological services, lack of awareness about service availability, and the constraints of time that hinder using long-term (multi-session) psychological therapies. These challenges are frequently cited as barriers to the access and utilization of psychological services in Canada. Unfortunately, this situation leaves many Canadians grappling with physical and mental disabilities, economic productivity losses, and facing an elevated risk of suicide due to unmet mental health care needs. Thus, there is a need for efficient and sustainable service delivery models that enable quick access to treatment for mental health concerns.

There is substantial evidence for the use of internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) as an alternative to face-to-face cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for the treatment of common mental health concerns such as anxiety and depression. The duration of ICBT courses varies, but most involve several lessons spanning 6-12 weeks. Offering brief, low-intensity supports may help alleviate barriers related to treatment seekers' time constraints.In face-to-face services, there is growing evidence that clients with symptoms of depression and anxiety can benefit from a single session intervention, but there is limited research on the use of single session interventions in ICBT, particularly within Canada.

Preliminary findings from the eCentre Clinic in Australia on a single lesson intervention (i.e., the 'Things You Do' course; TYD) are promising. The TYD is a single online lesson that provides psychoeducation about factors that contribute to mental health, as well as 5 target areas that clients can focus on to improve their mental health: realistic thinking, meaningful activities, goal setting, healthy routines, and social connections. Clients who completed the TYD reported significant improvements in depression and anxiety from pre- to post-treatment, with changes maintained at 12-week follow-up.

Given these promising preliminary findings, investigators propose to implement and evaluate the acceptability and short-term effects of a single-session intervention, the 'Things You Do' (TYD), in a Canadian context. The TYD is focused on everyday behaviours and actions that most people can choose to do, that is, it comprises modifiable behaviours which most people would recognize as important for mental health. It therefore has the potential to serve as a scalable, self-guided mental health intervention.

The following research questions will be evaluated:

1. What will be the uptake of the TYD course relative to other online mental health courses in the Online Therapy Unit?

2. What are the baseline demographic and clinical (e.g., severity levels of anxiety and depression symptoms) characteristics of individuals who sign up for the TYD?

3. How acceptable is the TYD in a Canadian context, as assessed via participants' ratings and feedback on likes and dislikes about the course content and process?

4. Will participating in TYD result in a clinically significant reduction in symptoms related to anxiety and depression and improvements in other measures administered?

5. What baseline demographic and clinical characteristics are related to outcomes post-treatment?

6. What percentage of TYD participants express interest in seeking out and enrolling in other online services offered by the Online Therapy Unit and how many individuals from other online services offered by the Online Therapy Unit subsequently enroll in TYD?

The study will begin with a pilot trial to examine research question 4. The intention is to collect more information if feasible to answer the other research questions related to uptake of the course, exploration of demographic and clinical characteristics of those who take the course, acceptability of the course and feedback on the course, relationship of demographic and clinical characteristics to outcomes and subsequent use of other services after taking the TYD course.

Conditions

Depression, Anxiety

Study Design

• Observational Model Type: COHORT
• Study Time Perspective: PROSPECTIVE

Study Groups

Brief psychological intervention (Things You Do)

All participants will have access to the online course materials for a period of 4 weeks from the time of enrolment. The materials are self-directed and can be accessed at any time during the 4-week period.

Things You Do Course

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Participants receiving the brief psychological intervention ('Things You Do' Course) will have access to a single online lesson that includes course materials and printable materials (i.e., an activity guide and planner) that can be retained for longer-term use. The course materials include an introduction to the purpose and content of the course, education about factors that impact mental health, and information about the 'Big Five' things participants can do to improve their mental health. Participants will also receive automated no-reply emails (5 days/week) through the intervention platform to remind them to practice the skills from the course.

Interventions

Things You Do Course

Participants receiving the brief psychological intervention ('Things You Do' Course) will have access to a single online lesson that includes course materials and printable materials (i.e., an activity guide and planner) that can be retained for longer-term use. The course materials include an introduction to the purpose and content of the course, education about factors that impact mental health, and information about the 'Big Five' things participants can do to improve their mental health. Participants will also receive automated no-reply emails (5 days/week) through the intervention platform to remind them to practice the skills from the course.

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Canadian resident;
• Aged 18 years or older;
• Seeking services for mental health concerns

Exclusion Criteria

• Living outside of Canada
• Unable to read and understand English

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

University of Regina

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Responsibility Role: SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Heather Hadjistavropoulos, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of Regina

Locations

Online Therapy Unit- University of Regina

Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada

Site Status: RECRUITING

Countries

Canada

Central Contacts

Heather Hadjistavropoulos, PhD

Role: CONTACT

hadjista@uregina.ca

306-585-5133

Marcie Nugent, MSW

Role: CONTACT

marcie.nugent@uregina.ca

306-337-3331

Facility Contacts

Heather Hadjistavropoulos, PhD

Role: primary

Heather.Hadjistavropoulos@uregina.ca

306-585-5133

Marcie Nugent, MSW

Role: backup

Marcie.Nugent@uregina.ca

306-337-3331

References

Faber, S. C., Williams, M. T., Metzger, I. W., MacIntyre, M. M., Strauss, D., Duniya, C. G., ... & Goghari, V. M. (2023). Lions at the gate: How weaponization of policy prevents people of colour from becoming professional psychologists in Canada. Canadian Psychology.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Hahmann, T.; Kumar, M.B. Unmet Health Care Needs during the Pandemic and Resulting Impacts among First Nations People Living Off Reserve, Métis and Inuit; Statistics Canada: Ottawa, ON, Canada, 2022; Available online: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2022001/article/00008-eng.htm# (accessed on 3 January 2023).

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Khattar J, Griffith LE, Jones A, De Rubeis V, de Groh M, Jiang Y, Basta NE, Kirkland S, Wolfson C, Raina P, Anderson LN; Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA) Team. Symptoms of depression and anxiety, and unmet healthcare needs in adults during the COVID-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. BMC Public Health. 2022 Dec 1;22(1):2242. doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-14633-4.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 36456993 (View on PubMed)

Statistics Canada. Health Fact Sheets: Mental Health Care Needs, 2018; Catalogue No. 82-625-X; Statistics Canada: Ottawa, ON, Canada, 2019; Available online: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/pub/82-625-x/2019001/article/00011-eng.pdf (accessed on 10 August 2022)

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

Other Identifiers

414

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id