RecruitingACTRN12625000143426

Replication trial of the OurFutures Vaping Program: Evaluation of a school-based eHealth program to prevent e-cigarette use among adolescents in NSW Public Schools

Replication trial of the OurFutures Vaping Program: A cluster randomised controlled trial of a school-based eHealth intervention to prevent e-cigarette use among adolescents in NSW Public Schools.

Sponsor

The University of Sydney

Enrollment

1,265 participants

Start Date

Mar 4, 2025

Study Type

Interventional

Conditions

E-cigarette use Tobacco cigarette use

Summary

Adolescent e-cigarette use has drastically increased in recent years, posing several acute and chronic harms, including poisonings, burns, serious lung injury, and - where nicotine e-liquid is used - the potential to impact brain development and lead to dependence. Effective and scalable preventive interventions are urgently needed, and school-based eHealth interventions are an efficient, effective and economical approach. To address this need, we developed the OurFutures Vaping Program. Built on the successful ‘OurFutures’ (formerly ‘Climate Schools’) prevention model, the OurFutures Vaping Program involves 4x40 minute online cartoon-based lessons that are delivered during Year 7/8 health education classes. An initial trial of the intervention began in 2023 among 40 Independent and Catholic schools across NSW, QLD and WA. Due to time constraints for ethical approvals, public schools were unable to be included. To address this limitation, this replication study aims to evaluate the OurFutures Vaping Program among 12 NSW public schools via a cluster randomised controlled trial. It is hypothesized that: • H1 (primary outcome): Students who receive the OurFutures Vaping Program will be less likely to commence e-cigarette use at the 12-month follow-up, compared to students in an active control condition. • H2: The OurFutures Vaping Program will achieve superior outcomes to the control condition on secondary outcomes including: uptake of tobacco smoking, frequency/quantity of e-cigarettes use and tobacco smoking, intentions to use e-cigarettes/tobacco cigarettes, knowledge about e-cigarettes and tobacco smoking,

Eligibility

Sex: Both males and femalesMin Age: 11 YearssMax Age: 15 Yearss

Plain Language Summary

Simplified for easier understanding

Vaping (using e-cigarettes) has become increasingly common among teenagers in recent years. While often marketed as harmless, e-cigarettes can cause serious lung injury, poisoning, and — when they contain nicotine — may affect brain development in young people and lead to addiction. The OurFutures Vaping Program is a school-based education program that teaches Year 7 and Year 8 students about the risks of vaping through four engaging, 40-minute online cartoon-based lessons delivered during health classes. An earlier trial showed promising results in independent and Catholic schools. This new study will test the program in NSW public schools to see if it can prevent teenagers from starting to vape. Eligible participants are Year 7 and Year 8 students at participating NSW public schools in 2025, aged approximately 11 to 15, who are fluent in English and have parental consent to take part. This is a prevention-focused study — you don't need to already be vaping to participate. The program is designed to be informative, engaging, and delivered entirely within normal school hours.

This summary was AI-generated to explain the trial in plain language. It is not medical advice. Always discuss eligibility with your doctor before enrolling in a clinical trial.

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Interventions

The OurFutures Vaping Program is a universal school-based eHealth prevention program that aims to prevent the uptake, and reduce the use, of e-cigarettes among adolescents. The program is built on the effective “OurFutures” (formerly “Climate Schools”) prevention model which is based on social influence and social competence principles. Participating secondary schools will be randomly allocated to one of two groups: i) an active control group (usual health education) or ii) an intervention group (the OurFutures Vaping Program). The OurFutures Vaping Program aligns with the Australian and state-based Health & Physical Education Curriculums and is designed to be delivered during Year 7/8 health education classes. The program consists of 4x40-minute lessons (delivered one week apart over 4 weeks) consisting of a web-based cartoon component completed individually by students (approx. 20mins), followed by optional teacher-facilitated activities (e.g., quizzes, class discussions, role plays). There are quizzes and reflective activities embedded in the cartoons to ensure student engagement, comprehension, and critical thinking. Factsheets are provided after each lesson to summarise and reinforce key content. The intervention aims to provide students with evidence-based information about e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes (e.g., what they are made of, short- and long-term harms, the influence of media and marketing, signs of nicotine addiction, coping and help-seeking information and the benefits of avoiding e-cigarettes and tobacco cigarettes), to modify existing norms, and improve resistance skills (via practicing assertive communication and other refusal skills). Students and teachers access the intervention materials online via the OurFutures Vaping Program website. Teachers are provided with links to curriculum outlines, lesson summaries and implementation guides. No formal teacher training is required to deliver the intervention; however, researchers are available for a one-off meeting with teachers (approx. 30 minutes) to demonstrate how to navigate the study website and answer any questions from teachers. Program Fidelity: Teachers will be asked to complete logbooks to document their implementation of the OurFutures Vaping Program (i.e. timing, activities delivered, technical problems, other implementation details). Website analytics will provide objective data on the dose and timing of intervention delivery.