Clinical trial NCT06806150: The INSPIRE Study: INvestigation of Swiss Physicians Inner-life, Resilience, and Emotions
Official title: The INSPIRE Study: INvestigation of Swiss Physicians Inner-life, Resilience, and Emotions
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: NOT_YET_RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Burnout, Professional
Emotional Exhaustion
Emotions
Wellness, Psychological
Satisfaction, Personal
Keywords: Psychological resilience
Positive Psychology
Lead sponsor: University of Bern
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2025-02-03
Enrollment: 450
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: yes
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Primary purpose: HEALTH_SERVICES_RESEARCH

Brief summary: The goal of this clinical trial, nested within an observational cohort study, is to evaluate whether two positive psychology web-based interventions can reduce emotional exhaustion and improve overall well-being in practicing physicians in Switzerland. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Does participation in positive psychology interventions reduce emotional exhaustion at three months post-intervention? How do these interventions impact physician wellness, job satisfaction, comfort with end-of-life communication and other aspects of physicians' emotional well-being?

Researchers will compare the effects of two intervention arms (general reflection vs. work-specific reflection) to a control group to determine whether focusing on work-specific aspects leads to greater improvements in emotional exhaustion and job-related outcomes.

Participants will:

* Complete an 8-day intervention consisting of positive psychology activities delivered online.
* Complete baseline and follow-up assessments over the study period

Detailed description: Burnout, emotional exhaustion, and moral distress are widespread among physicians, negatively impacting patient care, job satisfaction, and physician retention in the workforce. While interventions targeting burnout exist, many require significant time commitments or institutional support, limiting accessibility.

Positive psychology interventions, which emphasize strengths-based approaches such as self-reflection, gratitude, and self-compassion, have shown promise in enhancing resilience and well-being.

The INSPIRE study is a randomized controlled trial (RCT) nested within an observational cohort using a Trial within Cohort (TwiC) design. It evaluates two web-based positive psychology interventions aimed at reducing emotional exhaustion and improving physician well-being.

A subset of cohort participants is randomized into one of three arms: a control group, a general life reflection intervention, or a work-focused reflection intervention. The interventions consist of an 8-day structured self-reflection program delivered online.

The study employs automated randomization, triple masking (participants, investigators, and outcome assessors), and longitudinal assessments over one year. Findings will inform the scalability of low-burden interventions for physician burnout prevention.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

1. Be a practicing physician in Switzerland
2. Working at least 40% in a clinical capacity
3. Be willing and able to provide informed consent
4. Expecting to be professionally active until 2028

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Retired physician or physician seeking retirement within 3 years from first participation in the study
2. Physician unable to participate in one of the study languages: English, German, or French

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change from baseline in Emotional Exhaustion
timeFrame: 3 months post-intervention
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Change in Emotional Exhaustion
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Depersonalization
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Personal Accomplishment
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Physician wellbeing
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Job Satisfaction
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in comfort with End-of-Life Communication
timeFrame: Baseline to 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Mindfulness
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Compassionate Care
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Emotion Regulation
timeFrame: Baseline to 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Positive and Negative Affect
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Change in Authenticity
timeFrame: Baseline to 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
measure: Resilience
timeFrame: Baseline to 2 weeks, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, 1 year
Other outcomes:
measure: Perceived impact of the INSPIRE Interventions
timeFrame: Within 6 months post-intervention
measure: Acceptability of the INSPIRE Interventions
timeFrame: Within 6 months post-intervention
Locations:
city: Bern
country: Switzerland
facility: University of Bern
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Bern
name: Sofia C Zambrano, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: