An interventional study of "Do More, Feel Better" for Older People with HIV in Depression and HIV, sponsored by University of Washington. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 50 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-04.
Sponsored by University of Washington · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
More than half of people living with HIV (PWH) in the United States are 50 years of age or older. Older PWH have a 2.3-fold increased risk of depression compared to their peers without HIV. The investigator team has developed a streamlined lay-delivered behavioral activation intervention called "Do More, Feel Better" that has been shown to decrease depressive symptoms among older adults obtaining services in community senior centers. The investigators propose to (1) identify barriers and facilitators to improving mental health among older PWH by using this intervention in the context of Ryan White case management services, (2) adapt and enhance the intervention to meet the needs of older PWH, and (3) conduct a pilot randomized controlled trial to determine the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of the adapted DMFB intervention.
More than half of people living with HIV (PWH) in the United States (US) are 50 years of age or older. Compared with those without HIV, older PWH have 2.3-fold increased risk of depression. The impact of unmitigated mental health symptoms and related conditions among this growing population is significant and includes social isolation, loss of independence, and poor engagement with healthcare, undermining progress towards ending the HIV epidemic. Due to a shortage behavioral health providers, there is growing interest in innovative interventions using community-based, peer-led approaches to improve access to effective mental health services. Behavioral activation is an evidence-based intervention that has shown promise for reducing depressive symptoms among older adults. The investigator team has developed a streamlined lay-delivered behavioral activation intervention called "Do More, Feel Better" (DMFB) that has been shown to decrease depressive symptoms among depressed (PHQ-9 ≥10) older adults obtaining services in community senior centers. Delivery of an adapted version of the DMFB intervention for older PWH with poor access to professional counseling could be relatively straightforward within the existing Ryan White HIV/AIDS program, supported by organizations that provide essential services such as non-medical case management to low-income PWH. Because the intervention is tailored to individual preferences and needs, it promises to be acceptable, especially after careful adaptation using input from community members and stakeholders. This study's aims are therefore: (1) to understand the impact of mental health issues on HIV care, functioning, and quality of life and identify multi-level barriers and facilitators that could influence participation in and delivery of an adapted DMFB intervention; (2) to adapt and enhance the DMFB intervention for delivery by case management program staff or volunteers to older PWH, following the ADAPT-ITT model in collaboration with community partners; and (3) to determine the acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness of the adapted DMFB intervention compared to clinician-delivered Behavioral Activation therapy over 3 months in a pilot randomized controlled trial. Results of this research will have high impact by adapting an effective lay-delivered behavioral activation intervention for older PWH that is low-cost, scalable, and easily tailored to individual preferences and needs. Ongoing work on the DMFB intervention indicates that this lay-delivered intervention has great potential to produce concrete improvements in mental health and quality of life. The study's multidisciplinary team has a strong record of research on HIV care, geriatric mental health, HIV and aging, behavioral health and implementation science, and the experience with mixed methods approaches, intervention adaptation, and clinical trials necessary to successfully carry out this work. Adaptation of the DMFB intervention has the potential to be acceptable, feasible, effective and scalable when delivered within case management organizations, improving the lives and HIV outcomes of older PWH.
8,577 studies on the registry are indexed under Depression; 1,720 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 48 is below the median of 81 across 7,063 interventional studies indexed under Depression.
Browse Depression studies →University of Washington is the lead sponsor of 1,433 studies on the registry; 225 are open to participants now.
Of its 158 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 136 (86%) have results posted.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
Inclusion Criteria:
Exclusion Criteria: Participants in the Aim 1 and 2 work (interviews and theater testing) and those who serve as certification participants (for interventionist training) will be excluded from the trial. Other exclusion criteria include:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
The human immunodeficiency virus, which weakens the immune system.
Many studies now accept people whose HIV is controlled on treatment, judged by the viral load and the CD4 count. Check the limits this study sets.
HIV
The human immunodeficiency virus, which weakens the immune system.
Many studies now accept people whose HIV is controlled on treatment, judged by the viral load and the CD4 count. Check the limits this study sets.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
The control condition will be usual care, which will likely involve some period waiting for an intake followed by supportive counseling sessions for treating depressive symptoms. Receipt of counseling and other supportive services during the trial for both the intervention and usual care groups will be closely tracked.
Lay-delivered behavioral activation intervention, adapted based on interviews and theater testing with the target audience
Behavioral: "Do More, Feel Better" for Older People with HIV
The adapted behavioral activation intervention will be delivered by trained lay interventionists and provided over 9 weekly sessions lasting 45-60 minutes in person, by telephone, or by Zoom. This intervention currently consists of an initial meeting for psychoeducation and compilation of a tailored list of enjoyable and rewarding activities the client will draw from and schedule, followed by 8 weekly sessions to monitor symptoms, review homework, and continue daily activity scheduling.
Acceptability of Intervention Measure (AIM)
4-item scale with response options ranging from 1-5 per item, with a summed scale score ranging from 4-20 and mean scale score ranging from 1-5. Higher scores indicate greater acceptability of the intervention.
Time frame: week 3 and 9
Intervention Appropriateness Measure (IAM)
4-item scale with response options ranging from 1-5 per item, with a summed scale score ranging from 4-20 and mean scale score ranging from 1-5. Higher scores indicate greater perceived appropriateness of the intervention.
Time frame: week 3 and 9
Feasibility of Intervention Measure (FIM)
4-item scale with response options ranging from 1-5 per item, with a summed scale score ranging from 4-20 and mean scale score ranging from 1-5. Higher scores indicate greater perceived feasibility of the intervention.
Time frame: week 3 and 9
Session attendance
Session attendance will be calculated as the proportion of intervention sessions attended out of nine possible sessions.
Time frame: week 9
Exit interview
Qualitative feedback on the adapted DMFB intervention and clinician-delivered BA therapy will be collected in exit interviews with a sample of participants from each arm
Time frame: week 9
Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (Ham-D)
The Ham-D 24-item scale is a semi-structured clinical interview that assesses depression severity. Scores range from 0 to 76, with higher scores indicating greater depressive-symptom severity. Scores 0-7 represent transient to no depressive symptoms; 8-13 mild depression; 14-18 moderate depression; 19-22 severe depression and above 22 very severe depression.
Time frame: Baseline, week 3, week 6, week 9, week 12
Behavioral activation for depression scale (BADS)
The BADS is a 25-item scale assessing overall activity level based on four factors: activation, avoidance/rumination, work/school impairment and social impairment. Each item ranges from 0 ('not at all') to 6 ('completely'); total scores range from 0 to 150. Higher total scores indicate better behavioral activation and fewer depressive-avoidance behaviors.
Time frame: Baseline, week 3, week 6, week 9, week 12
Three-item self-report measure for medication adherence
Wilson's three-item self-report measure for medication adherence assesses missed days during the past 30 days, frequency of taking medication as prescribed, and the person's rating of how well they took it. Scores range from 0-100 for the raw summary score, calculated as the mean of the three item scores. Higher scores indicate better medication adherence.
Time frame: Baseline, week 9, week 12
Index of engagement in HIV care
The CFAR Network of Integrated Clinical Systems 10-item index of engagement in HIV care includes 10 items rated on a 5-point Likert scale. The range of summed scores is from 10-50 and mean scores range from 1-5. Higher scores indicate better HIV care engagement.
Time frame: Baseline, week 9, week 12
HIV-1 RNA viral load
Dried blood spots will be collected for viral load testing through the University of Washington Department of Laboratory Medicine. Any viral load \<200 copies/mL will be considered suppressed.
Time frame: Baseline, week 12
Date of last clinic visit
Provider-reported date of last clinic visit, obtained for participants who grant permission for release of this information.
Time frame: Baseline, week 24
Most recent viral load
Provider-reported most recent viral load, obtained for participants who grant permission for release of this information.
Time frame: Baseline, week 24
Most recent CD4 count
Provider-reported most recent CD4 count, obtained for participants who grant permission for release of this information.
Time frame: Baseline, week 24
Plan to share: Yes — IDP will be shared with the NIMH Data Archive.
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Informed consent form, Clinical study report, Analytic code
Time frame: The protocol, statistical analysis plan, and ICF will be uploaded to ClinicalTrials.gov as soon as they are approved. The clinical study report and analytic code will be uploaded upon completion of the trial and its analysis.
Access criteria: Deidentified data on arm, primary and secondary outcomes, and basic demographic characteristics will be available through the NIMH Data Archives.
Data sharing details ↗ · nda.nih.gov
Start is estimated for Nov 2027; primary completion for Jun 2028, 7 months later.
Of 3,468 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Depression, half reached primary completion within 21 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 41. This study's planned 7 months is below that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 3,566 studies reached it within 21 months; a quarter within 9 and three quarters within 41.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Oct 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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