CClinicalTrials.gg
Status unknownNCT01800266STEPSUpdated May 1, 2015

Randomized Controlled Trial of Supervision Strategies to Improve Clinician Fidelity to Trauma-focused CBT

An interventional study of Supervision Practices of TF-CBT in Post Traumatic Stress, Overall Functioning and Clinician Fidelity, sponsored by University of Washington. Status unknown at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 6 Years to 17 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2015-05-01.

Sponsored by University of Washington · Not applicable, Interventional, and Health services research

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified Apr 2015), so the status shown — last known as Recruiting — may be out of date.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
1,280
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
6 Years to 17 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The primary goal of this study is to examine the impact of varying supervision strategies on clinician fidelity and client outcomes in a community-based setting. Prior research has established that training approaches that do not include a period of intervention-specific supervision or consultation are ineffective and that implementation efforts that include only an initial period of supervision show an eventual attenuation of gains in knowledge and fidelity in practice. Ongoing supervision may be required for effective and sustained implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in community-based settings. However, supervision is one of the least investigated aspects of training. "Gold standard" elements of supervision from efficacy trials include review of sessions, standardized procedures for monitoring client outcomes and model fidelity, and ongoing skill-building (e.g., behavioral rehearsal). The degree (e.g., frequency, intensity) to which these strategies are used in community-based settings is unknown.

There are a growing number of national and statewide efforts to increase the reach of EBPs through dissemination and implementation initiatives. There are 18 statewide initiatives to implement Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), an EBP for child trauma exposure and sequelae. Many of the community based TF-CBT implementation efforts, and those for other EBPs, include a specific focus on supervisors. However, the limited scientific literature provides very little guidance for these efforts. Aims of the current trial include 1) studying supervision with existing implementation supports; particularly presence of gold standard elements; 2) evaluating the effects of varying supervision strategies on fidelity and client outcomes; and 3) testing the mediating effect of treatment fidelity on the relationship between supervision type and client outcomes. We propose a two-phased, within-subjects and between subjects design. In Phase I (9 months), we examined supervision with implementation support. In Phase II (30 months), we will examine two specific supervision conditions, each including varying EBP supervision elements.

02

Conditions studied

  • Post Traumatic Stress
  • Overall Functioning
  • Clinician Fidelity
  • Supervision

Keywords

  • Supervision
  • Implementation
  • Community Based Mental Health Services
  • Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
  • Skill Building and Behavioral Rehearsal
  • Symptom and Fidelity Monitoring
  • Children
  • Adolescents
03

In context

Lead sponsor

University of Washington is the lead sponsor of 1,397 studies on the registry; 225 are open to participants now.

Of its 154 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 132 (86%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
6 Years to 17 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Children between the ages of 6-17 who are starting Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) with one of our enrolled clinicians.They must also have significant Post Traumatic Stress symptoms as measured by a score of 21 or higher on the UCLA PTSD-RI, and live with a parent or guardian who is willing to participate in the study.
  • Community-based mental health clinicians who are employed in Regional Support Network agencies (state Medicaid clinics) who have participated in the Washington State Initiative for TF-CBT and are supervised by a participating supervisor, or have completed the TF-CBT web training and been supervised on a case.
  • Community-based mental health supervisors trained in the WA State Initiative in TF-CBT and employed at participating clinics in WA.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Non-English speaking child.
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Health services research
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
1,280 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Symptom and Fidelity Monitoring (SFM)

    Half of the study clinicians will be randomized to this supervision condition of TF-CBT.

    Behavioral: Supervision Practices of TF-CBT

  • Experimental
    SFM + Behavioral Rehearsal

    Half of the study clinicians will be randomized to this supervision condition of TF-CBT.

    Behavioral: Supervision Practices of TF-CBT

Interventions

  • BehavioralSupervision Practices of TF-CBT

    Supervisors will be trained in one of two supervision strategies: Symptom and Fidelity Monitoring (SFM) or Symptom and Fidelity Monitoring + Behavioral Rehearsal (SFM + BR)

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Coding Therapy Sessions to Assess Clinician Fidelity to TF-CBT Strategy.

    Evidence-Based Practices such as Trauma-focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT) usually include ongoing supervision to assess how true (e.g. fidelity) clinicians stay to their training in the specific treatment. We will be coding therapy audio recordings using an adapted TF-CBT Therapy Process Observational Coding System for Children (TF-CBT TPOCS-S) scoring manual. We will also use clinician self-report of fidelity using the Washington State Evidence Based Practice (EBP) Toolkit, and supervisor-report of fidelity in the EBP Toolkit. We will ultimately be assessing how fidelity serves as a mediator for the relationship between supervision condition and client outcomes.

    Time frame: 2 years

Secondary outcomes

  1. Client outcomes for Post-Traumatic Stress and overall functioning

    We will complete phone interviews with children and guardians to assess the client outcomes at baseline, 3 months post-baseline, and 6 months post-baseline. We will use the UCLA Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Reaction Index (PTSD RI) to assess trauma exposure and post-traumatic stress symptoms. We will use the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ), a short behavioral screening survey, to assess overall functioning.

    Time frame: 6 months

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • University of Washington Department of Psychology
    Seattle, Washington 98195, United States
    Recruiting
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Dorsey S, Kerns SEU, Lucid L, Pullmann MD, Harrison JP, Berliner L, Thompson K, Deblinger E. Objective coding of content and techniques in workplace-based supervision of an EBT in public mental health. Implement Sci. 2018 Jan 24;13(1):19. doi: 10.1186/s13012-017-0708-3. PubMed 29368656 ↗
  • Dorsey S, Pullmann MD, Deblinger E, Berliner L, Kerns SE, Thompson K, Unutzer J, Weisz JR, Garland AF. Improving practice in community-based settings: a randomized trial of supervision - study protocol. Implement Sci. 2013 Aug 10;8:89. doi: 10.1186/1748-5908-8-89. PubMed 23937766 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 1, 2015, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
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Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01800266
Lead sponsor
University of Washington
Collaborators
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
Responsible party
Shannon Dorsey (Associate Professor, University of Washington) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 27, 2013
Start date
Jul 2012
Primary completion
Mar 2017 (estimated)
Completion
Mar 2017 (estimated)
Last update
May 1, 2015

Study contacts

Shannon Dorsey, PhD
Contact
dorsey2@u.washington.edu
206.543.4527
Kelly Thompson, MSW
Contact
kelly3@u.washington.edu
206.616.5768
Shannon Dorsey, PhD
principal investigator · University of Washington
Kelly Thompson, MSW
study director · University of Washington

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is status unknown, as verified in Apr 2015. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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