Prevention of the development of psychological distress following a motor vehicle crash: study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

BackgroundIt is estimated that up to 50 % of motor vehicle crash survivors develop significant psychological distress, such as depressive mood and anxiety, within 6 months of the crash. Associated impacts include loss of employment, delayed return to work, financial and familial stress, and increased medical and compensation costs. The major aim of this research is to investigate the efficacy of interventions for preventing the development of psychological distress following a motor vehicle crash. The efficacy of two brief interventions will be examined: a cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) programme, targeting mood and anxiety, and a lifestyle programme, targeting sleep, diet and physical activity.Methods/designThis is a randomized, controlled multisite study. Participants include at least 180 adults injured in a motor vehicle crash who have entered a compensation process. Research will compare outcomes in three groups randomly assigned to: one group of 60 adults, who receive a brief email-delivered CBT programme, with one session every 2 weeks for 10 weeks and telephone contact every 2 weeks; a second group of 60 adults, who receive a brief email-delivered lifestyle intervention involving one session every 2 weeks for 10 weeks with telephone contact; and an active waiting-list control group of 60 adults who are provided claims processing-related reading material along with telephone contact every 2 weeks for 10 weeks. Participants will be recruited within 12 weeks of the motor vehicle crash, and will be comprehensively assessed before and after treatment, and 6 and 12 months post-injury. Assuming an α probability level of 0.05 and a power of 80 %, at least 180 participants will be recruited. The primary outcome measure is the presence and severity of psychological distress or disorder. Secondary outcome measures include assessment of self-efficacy, resilience employment status, social activity and support, lifestyle and physical health factors, along with process outcome measures of treatment acceptability, feasibility and generalizability.DiscussionThis study will determine whether brief email-delivered interventions distributed soon after the injury and entry into the claims process can be effective in preventing the development of psychological distress.Trial registrationANZCTR, ACTRN12615000326594. Registered on 9 April 2015.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13063-016-1455-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Prevalence and psychometric screening for the detection of major depressive disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder in adults injured in a motor vehicle crash who are engaged in compensation

“…The aim of the RCT is to determine the efficacy of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) to prevent/reduce rates of MDD and PTSD in those physically injured MVC survivors engaged in compensation. Full details of the RCT can be found elsewhere [ 35 ]. The trial registration number is ACTRN12615000326594.…”

“…Those who did not have access to the internet were mailed the complete assessment with a return mail envelope. All participants were also telephoned to ensure they understood assessment instructions [ 35 ].…”

Psychological distress following a motor vehicle crash: preliminary results of a randomised controlled trial investigating brief psychological interventions

“…The details of the protocol, such as recruitment, design, setting and aims for this randomised controlled trial (RCT), have been previously reported in the study’s published protocol paper [ 30 ]. A CONSORT checklist file shows how the recommendations for a clinical trial have been addressed (Additional file 1 ).…”

“…Participants included MVC survivors who lodged a compensation claim in New South Wales (NSW) or Victoria, Australia, between July 2015 and May 2017. Subsequent to publication of the protocol paper [ 30 ], a third recruitment site was secured in NSW. Recruitment sites included: (1) Suncorp and (2) the National Roads and Motorists’ Association in NSW and (3) the Transport Accident Commission in Victoria.…”

“…Based on prior results for the CBT and HL interventions [ 7 , 14 , 15 ], the two interventions were assumed to have at least a small to moderate mean effect size of 0.25 (Cohen’s d ) compared to the control group. Assuming α = 0.05 and a power of 80% for a three-group comparison analysis with four measures over time, a sample of 135 participants needed to be recruited to detect true differences [ 30 ]. It was, therefore, proposed to recruit at least 180 participants to accommodate loss to follow-up of approximately 25% based on similar research [ 31 ].…”