Comparing Two Moral Injury Treatments

Part of paid clinical trials in Aurora, Colorado.

Sponsor
VA Eastern Colorado Health Care System
Study ID
NCT07710521
Status
Not Yet Recruiting

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Conditions

  • Moral Injury

Eligibility Criteria

Sex
ALL
Age
18 Years - 89 Years
Healthy Volunteers
Not accepted

Interventions

  • Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Moral Injury (ACT-MI) — BEHAVIORAL
    ACT-MI is a 15-week hybrid group (12, 90-minute group sessions) and individual (3, 30-minute case conceptualization sessions) psychotherapy offered over telehealth. The primary goal of the clinician delivering ACT-MI is to help individuals impacted by moral injury live meaningful lives even in the presence of moral pain. This means learning to experience moral pain and connecting with values simultaneously.
  • Present Centered Therapy for Moral Injury (PCT-MI) — BEHAVIORAL
    PCT-MI is a 15-week hybrid group (12, 90-min sessions) and individual (3, 30-min sessions) psychotherapy offered over telehealth. PCT was developed as an active control in a PTSD Prolonged Exposure trial, including psychoeducation and problem-solving as the primary interventions. PCT has been used in multiple clinical trials as an active control condition for PTSD. Additionally, PCT has been used as a control condition in moral injury efficacy trials for interventions like Adaptive Disclosure and Building Spiritual Strength. However, these comparison conditions focused on the treatment of PTSD rather than moral injury. The proposed PCT-MI comparison condition has been adapted to focus specifically on moral injury. PCT-MI includes psychoeducation about moral injury and related problems and individual case conceptualization sessions that are theoretically coherent with the process-based framework and nonspecific therapeutic factors central to PCT and present in most psychotherapies.

Study Details

Purpose of this study: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of two psychological treatments for moral injury: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Moral Injury and Present Centered Therapy for Moral Injury. The main questions it aims to answer are: 1. Determine the efficacy of ACT-MI for building functional recovery among 180 warzone deployed Veterans. 2. Identify barriers and facilitators to implementing ACT-MI in VA mental health clinics or a national telehealth hub in preparation for future dissemination efforts. Participants will be asked to: * Complete a two to two and a half hour initial assessment session online using videoconferencing. Participants will be asked to complete surveys and questionnaires. * Be randomized to either ACT-MI or PCT-MI * Meet with the study clinicians for 15 virtual outpatient sessions (12-group and 3-individual sessions). * Complete a post-treatment assessment session offered online using videoconferencing within one week of treatment completion to complete surveys and questionnaires. * Complete one- and three-month follow-up assessments offered online using videoconferencing to complete surveys and questionnaires.

Key Dates

First listed
Jul 17, 2026
Start date
Aug 31, 2026
Status verified
Jul 2026
Primary completion
Sep 30, 2030
Completion
Sep 30, 2030

Study Design

Enrollment
180 participants (estimated)
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT

Arms

  • Experimental: ACT-MI
    Acceptant and Commitment Therapy for Moral Injury
  • Active Comparator: PCT-MI
    Present Centered Therapy for Moral Injury

Primary Outcome Measure

Change from Baseline to post-treatment on Outcome Questionnaire - 45.2 [ Time Frame: Baseline, within 1 week post-treatment completion ]

Locations (1)

FacilityCityStateZIPSite coordinators
Rocky Mountain VA Regional Medical CenterAuroraColorado80045
Lauren Borges, PhD
[email protected]
720-723-4865
Amy Runyon, MS
[email protected]
720-723-6706
Lauren Borges, PhD (PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR)
Sean Barnes, PhD (SUB_INVESTIGATOR)

Find similar trials in Aurora, CO

By research site
Rocky Mountain VA Regional Medical Center· Aurora, CO

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