Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Study of Intervention Effectiveness in Improving Psychosocial and Economic Well-being of Sexual Violence Survivors in DRC
Brief Summary: The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has become synonymous with sexual violence by armed groups within the last 2 decades. Reportedly, tens of thousands of women and girls have been raped, sexually assaulted, attacked and abducted in the Eastern Provinces including North and South Kivu, targeted by armed groups with unparalleled levels of brutality.

Access to services in North and South Kivu-both emergency and longer term care-remains a major challenge. Limited services as well as the potential stigma of seeking services mean that many survivors have never received adequate care. Results of a preliminary study found many survivors have substantially reduced ability to function, including reduced ability to perform basic tasks and activities related to earning, self care, caring for family, and contributing to their communities. These survivors also describe high rates of mental health and social problems including mood disorders, anxiety, withdrawal, and stigmatization and rejection by family and community.

While social and economic development in conflict affected areas like DRC relies on populations who are ready and able to work, the psychological effects of conflict may mean that a percentage of the population living in these low-resource areas are less able to engage in economic opportunities even when they are available. However, there is little data on the best strategy to deal with this.

This study will be run as two parallel randomized impact evaluations to investigate the impacts of two different intervention programs to be implemented as part of standard programming of the collaborating NGO. The first study will focus on the impact of IRC's social-economic intervention, Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLA) compared to a wait-control sample. The VSLA impact evaluation study will be conducted in communities served by 9 community-based organization (CBO) partners. The second study will focus on the impact of a mental health intervention, Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) compared to a wait-control sample. The CPT impact evaluation study will be conducted in communities serviced by NGO partners currently providing psychosocial support. As an exploratory investigation, the researchers will follow the CPT program with the VSLA program to look at the effect of receiving a mental health intervention prior to the VSLA on rates of retention and impact.


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* Youth found to exhibit significant trauma symptomatology as evidenced by a score of 38 or above on the previously validated PTSD-RI symptom scale (Murray, et al. 2011) (trauma severity is the main study outcome) will be invited to join the trial. Youth must live in Lusaka, Zambia.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Youth currently receiving psychiatric care
* Youth who are actively suicidal
* Persons who are not mentally competent to give assent or whose legal guardians are not mentally competent to give consent to participate in the intervention
B: Inclusion Criteria:

* War-affected children and adolescents

Exclusion Criteria:

* No traumatic war events experienced
* Psychosis
* Inability to speak Swahili, French or English
C: Inclusion Criteria:

* survivor of sexual violence
* mental health symptom severity cut-off
* functional impairment cut-off

Exclusion Criteria:

* active suicidality
* not living in the study site
D: Inclusion Criteria:

* Exposure to Torture
* PTSD

Exclusion Criteria:

* Children
* Mentally incompetent to understand therapy

Answer: C