Recruiting soon

Peer Burnout Reduction Intervention in Harm Reduction Services

0 criteria met from your profileSee at a glance how your profile meets each eligibility criteria.
Study AimThis clinical trial aims to assess the acceptability, appropriateness, and feasibility of a peer burnout reduction intervention in harm reduction services. Participants will evaluate the intervention's relevance, practicality, and fit using the Acceptability, Appropriateness, and Feasibility Scales. Additionally, satisfaction with the training will be measured using a custom survey.
What is being tested

PATH (Peer Advanced Training in Harm reduction)

Behavioral
Who is being recruted

Burnout

+ Compassion Satisfaction
+ Secondary Trauma
Over 18 Years
+4 Eligibility Criteria

See all eligibility criteria

How is the trial designed

Services Research Study

Phase 2
Interventional
Study Start: January 2026

See protocol details

Summary

Principal SponsorChestnut Health Systems
Study ContactDennis Watson, PhD
Last updated: October 28, 2025
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner
Study start date: January 15, 2026Actual date on which the first participant was enrolled.

This study is designed to test a new program called PATH, aimed at reducing burnout among peer recovery support specialists (PRSS) working in Recovery Community Organizations (RCOs). The study involves both these specialists and their supervisors to see how well the program works, how suitable it is, and whether it can be easily implemented. The goal is to help these workers manage stress better, feel more satisfied in their roles, and improve their health-related knowledge and skills. This is important because these workers play a crucial role in supporting people recovering from substance use disorders, and reducing their stress can lead to better support for the people they help. Participants will engage in a total of 15 hours of training over three months, which includes online learning and interactive group sessions called ECHO meetings. The online modules take three hours and must be completed before the ECHO sessions, which occur weekly and involve discussions on real-life cases. Throughout the study, participants' engagement will be monitored, and they will complete surveys before and after the training to assess their experiences and measure changes in burnout and job satisfaction. There will also be focus groups and interviews to gather more detailed feedback. The study will measure the program's impact on reducing stress and improving job satisfaction among these essential workers.

Official TitlePATH to Reducing Burnout Among Peers Who Deliver Harm Reduction Services: Improving Workforce and Service System Outcomes Through a Combined eLearning and Group Consultation Intervention (R61 Phase Pilot) 
Principal SponsorChestnut Health Systems
Study ContactDennis Watson, PhD
Last updated: October 28, 2025
Sourced from a government-validated database.Claim as a partner

Protocol

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.
Design Details
100 patients to be enrolledTotal number of participants that the clinical trial aims to recruit.
Services Research Study
These studies look at how healthcare is delivered, managed, and organized. They aim to improve care quality, patient experience, and access to treatment.

How participants are assigned to different groups/arms
In this clinical study, all participants receive the same treatment. Since there is only one group, there is no need for randomization or assignment to different arms. This type of study is often used to test a new treatment without comparing it to another.

Other Ways to Assign Participants
Randomized allocation: Participants are assigned randomly, like flipping a coin, to ensure fairness and reduce bias.
Non-randomized allocation: Participants are assigned based on specific factors, such as their medical condition or a doctor's decision.

How treatments are given to participants
In this study, all participants receive the same treatment. This approach is often used to evaluate the effects of a single intervention without comparing it to another.

Other Ways to Assign Treatments
Parallel assignment: Participants are split into separate groups, each receiving a different treatment.
Cross-over assignment: Participants switch between treatments during the study.
Factorial assignment: Participants receive different combinations of treatments.
Sequential assignment: Participants receive treatments one after another in a specific order, possibly based on individual responses.
Other assignment: Treatment assignment does not follow a standard or predefined design.

How the effectiveness of the treatment is controlled
In a non placebo-controlled study, no participants receive an inert substance (placebo) to compare outcomes. Instead, all participants receive either the experimental treatment or an alternative treatment (often the Standard of Care). This method allows researchers to compare the effects of the experimental treatment with those of a different active intervention, rather than a placebo.

Other Options
Placebo-Controlled: A placebo is used to compare the effects of the experimental treatment with those of an inert substance, isolating the true treatment effect.

How the interventions assigned to participants is kept confidential
Everyone involved in the study knows which treatment is being given. This is typically used when it's not possible or necessary to hide the treatment details from participants or researchers.

Other Ways to Mask Information
Single-blind: Participants do not know which treatment they are receiving, but researchers do.
Double-blind: Neither participants nor researchers know which treatment is given.
Triple-blind: Participants, researchers, and outcome assessors do not know which treatment is given.
Quadruple-blind: Participants, researchers, outcome assessors, and care providers all do not know which treatment is given.

Eligibility

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria: person's general health condition or prior treatments.
Conditions
Criteria
Any sexBiological sex of participants that are eligible to enroll.
Over 18 YearsRange of ages for which participants are eligible to join.
Healthy volunteers allowedIf individuals who are healthy and do not have the condition being studied can participate.
Conditions
Pathology
Burnout
Compassion Satisfaction
Secondary Trauma
Criteria
3 inclusion criteria required to participate
employed at a Recovery Community Organization or an organization providing direct harm reduction services, including syringe and/or outreach services
current PRSS staff or administrator involved in HR service delivery
is at least 18 years of age
1 exclusion criteria prevent from participating
none

Study Plan

Find out more about all the medication administered in this study, their detailed description and what they involve.
Treatment Groups
Study Objectives
One single intervention group 

is designated in this study

This study does not include a placebo group 

Treatment Groups
Group I
Experimental
Receive PATH pilot intervention
Study Objectives
Primary Objectives

Measured using the Acceptability, Appropriateness, and Feasibility Scales (AIM, IAM, FIM), a brief validated 4-item instruments measuring participants' perceptions of the intervention's relevance, practicality, and fit for their work.

Measured using the Training Satisfaction Questionnaire, a custom Likert-scale survey assessing overall satisfaction with the learning experience, content relevance, and applicability to peer support practice.

Study Centers

These are the hospitals, clinics, or research facilities where the trial is being conducted. You can find the location closest to you and its status.
This study has 1 location
Suspended
Chestnut Health Systems Lighthouse InstituteChicago, United StatesSee the location
Recruiting soonOne Study Center