Clinical trial NCT06239285: A Virtual Reality Brief Violence Intervention: Preventing Gun Violence Among Violently Injured Adults
Official title: A Virtual Reality Brief Violence Intervention: Preventing Gun Violence Among Violently Injured Adults
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: RECRUITING
Phase: NA
Conditions: Violence
Keywords: Firearm Violence Victim
Lead sponsor: Virginia Commonwealth University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
First posted: 2024-02-02
Enrollment: 220
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Intervention model description: A randomized control trial (RCT) in a large sample of violently injured adults (18+ years) from VCU Health.
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The overall aim of the proposed project is to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of Brief Violence Intervention-Virtual Reality (BVI-VR) for reducing firearm-related violence, re-injury, and mortality among victims of violence. Outcome measures of firearm-related violence will come from multiple sources, including criminal background checks, hospital data, state-level data, semi-structured clinical assessments, and self-report assessments. In addition, the study aims to understand the impact of BVI-VR on psychosocial mediators resulting in a reduction of firearm-related violence. This will include self-report surveys, neurocognitive assessments, and clinical assessments. The economic efficiency of BVI-VR as a firearm-related violence intervention will also evaluated. To achieve these aims, a randomized control trial (RCT) in a large sample of violently injured adults (18+ years) from VCU Health will be conducted.

Detailed description: Brief Violence Intervention-Virtual Reality (BVI-VR) is being developed as a hospital-based brief gun violence intervention program founded on the principles of positive psychology, motivational goal setting (via gameplay), psychoeducation, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and dialectical behavioral therapy. This proposal will develop five steps to create a 30-minute brief firearm-related violence intervention. The five steps address a range of psychosocial risk factors and enhance protective factors for violence, as well as psychoeducational programming specifically addressing the risk of firearm violence. All steps of the BVI-VR emphasize being in control of making positive choices, and how to locate and leverage opportunities within their communities to improve their well-being. BVI-VR empowers patients to be the driver of their well-being.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* violently injured patients from VCU's Level 1 Trauma Center
* 18 years or older
* English-speaking

Exclusion Criteria:

* Under 18 years old
* Not a victim of Violent crime

Primary outcomes:
measure: Firearm-related violence /The gun violence questionnaire
timeFrame: Baseline self-report, 3- and 6-months post-randomization
measure: Gun Behaviors and Beliefs Scale
timeFrame: 3 and 6 month post baseline
measure: Firearm criminal conviction and arrests/ Criminal Background Checks
timeFrame: prior to baseline assessment, from baseline to 3-month follow-up, and from 3-month follow-up to the 6-month follow-up.
measure: Non-convicted firearm-related violent crime/ Violent Crime Assessment
timeFrame: 3 and 6 month post baseline
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Firearm-related re-injury/ Self-report
timeFrame: 3 and 6 month post baseline
measure: Firearm-related re-injury/ Hospital data: Virginia Department of Health
timeFrame: 3 and 6 month post baseline
measure: Firearm-related mortality/ Hospital data; Virginia Department of Health; National Death Index
timeFrame: 3 and 6 month post baseline
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Richmond
country: United States
facility: Virginia Commonwealth University
state: Virginia
Study officials:
affiliation: Virginia Commonwealth University
name: Nicholas Thomson
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: