Increasing Veterans' Social Engagement and Connectedness
VA Office of Research and Development
264 participants
Oct 4, 2024
INTERVENTIONAL
Conditions
Summary
Social isolation is a negative social determinant of health that affects 1-in-5 adults in the U.S. and 43% of Veterans. Social isolation is estimated to cost the nation $6.7 billion annually in federal healthcare spending. Yet, social isolation has rarely been the direct focus of healthcare interventions. The proposed project is a randomized controlled trial that seeks to test the effectiveness of the Increasing Veterans' Social Engagement and Connectedness (CONNECTED) intervention on social isolation among diverse Veteran groups in primary care clinics. Increasing Veterans' Social Engagement and Connectedness involves three key services delivered by peers via telehealth through individual and group sessions over 8 weeks: 1) peer support, which includes person-centered assessment for social isolation, 2) psychosocial interventions to address social isolation, and 3) navigation (i.e., connecting Veterans to social resources). Findings from this study will contribute to the VA's efforts to address social determinants of health among Veterans and to provide high quality, person-centered, and equitable care to all Veterans.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria3
- Eligible participants for Aim 1 \& Aim 2
- Must be Veterans at the Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center or its Community-Based Outpatient Clinics who had a primary care encounter in the prior 6 months and
- Veteran obtained a score 12, indicating social isolation, on the Lubben Social Isolation Scale (LSNS-6), a validated, 6-item social isolation measure, at the time of screening in Aim 1.
Exclusion Criteria5
- For Aim 1 and Aim 2, the investigators will exclude Veterans with
- Active suicidal ideation needing immediate mental health treatment
- severe cognitive, hearing or speech impairment,
- current exacerbation of severe psychiatric symptoms (e.g., active psychosis), or
- severe illness that makes study participation not feasible.
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Interventions
CONNECTED is a manualized, peer-led, group-based social isolation intervention for diverse veteran populations in VA primary care settings. It is delivered via videoconference through individual and group sessions over 8 weeks.
VET BEFRIENDING (attention control arm) consists of weekly social interactions with a research assistant (RA) over videoconference or phone.
Locations(1)
View Full Details on ClinicalTrials.gov
For the most up-to-date information, visit the official listing.
NCT06467214