An LGBT-Competency Program for Mental Health Professionals in Romania

Summary

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals (LGBTI) present increased morbidity compared to the general population, which is attributed to healthcare discrimination and lack of LGBT-specific expertise, especially in high-stigma countries. Motivated by fear, Romanian LGBTI conceal their identities and report significantly more barriers to healthcare access than heterosexuals. Poor mental health, specifically anxiety and depression, is elevated for Romanian LGBTI, and associated with poor physical health (e.g., HIV risk, alcohol abuse.) However, LGBT-competent mental health professionals (MHPs) are nearly non-existent in Romania, and thus the negative impact of homophobia on mental health cannot be ameliorated. Given that a pilot of an in-person LGBT-affirmative MHP training recently tested in Romania showed significant receptivity and increased competence among MHPs, this training is ripe for testing its feasibility and efficacy in creating significant change via mobile delivery, in a randomized controlled trial (RCT). Proving the efficacy of this first mobile training and supervision model has high potential for cost-effective and expeditious boundless dissemination. Aim 1 will test the relative feasibility and efficacy of the mHealth MHP training by conducting an RCT comparing a mobile training (MT) of MHP LGBT-competency program (n=60) to the equivalent in-person training (IPT) (n=60) recently piloted. Both programs' content and structure will be identical (2-day trainings and two boosters 6 months apart). At baseline, 4, 8, and 12 months, all MHPs' LGBT-related attitudes, knowledge of LGBT health needs and clinical practice, and LGBT caseload will be assessed in a mobile fashion. In Aim 2 will test the efficacy of a companion mHealth supervision and consultation program in maintaining LGBT competency and enhancing LGBT-friendly practice. Half of the MHPs in each group will receive mHealth supervision and expert consultation program, consisting of monthly 2-hour virtual group meetings to discuss case studies, in order to determine the added benefit of mobile supervision. At the end of the study, 10 MHPs will provide interview-based program feedback. In Aim 3, the investigators will build mHealth research capacity among MHPs by demonstrating how to integrate mobile data collection tools in clinical practice to monitor client progress for personalized treatment plans.

Conditions

• Stigma, Social
• Gays
• Lesbians
• Bisexuals
• Gender Dysphoria

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Mobile web training LGBT mental health

Mobile web training LGBT mental health: Half of the participants were randomly assigned to receive the training in LGBT mental health in a the mobile fashion (on the web).

BEHAVIORAL

In-person training LGBT mental health

In-person training LGBT mental health: Half of the participants were randomly assigned to receive the training in LGBT mental health in-person.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Yale University

  collaborator OTHER

• Rutgers University

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Corina Lelutiu-Weinberger, PhD · Rutgers University

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

OTHER

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2017-09-16

Primary Completion

2018-10-30

Completion

2020-01-31

Countries

• Romania

Study Locations