Family Spirit Strengths

Summary

This project addresses the disproportionate morbidity and mortality associated with mental and behavioral health problems in American Indian and Alaska Native communities. Access to culturally competent and effective behavioral health services is limited in many of these communities. The investigators aim to address this gap by testing the effectiveness of a trans-diagnostic secondary prevention program, Family Spirit Strengths (FSS) that can be embedded within home visiting services. The FSS program is a skills-based program that incorporates elements of evidence-based practice, the Common Elements Treatment Approach (CETA), and materials informed and developed based on an Indigenous advisory group. The FSS program aims to help participants build self-efficacy and coping skills, as well as build stronger connections to others, the participants' community, and cultural resources. The investigators will use a randomized controlled trial, whereby half of the participants will receive FSS and the other half will receive an evidence-based nutrition education program. The investigators' study is grounded in participatory processes and led by a team of Indigenous and allied researchers.

Conditions

• Depressive Symptoms
• Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms
• Substance Use
• Mental Health Issue

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Family Spirit Strengths (FSS)

The FSS intervention consists of psychoeducational components that emphasize the importance of mental and emotional health as part of overall wellness, and seek to normalize experiences of stress, to de-stigmatize help-seeking, and to build hope. Core content focuses on awareness of the connections between thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and spirituality, and imparts related self-help skills. It also specifically builds in connection to culture, land and others as coping strategies. The FSS lessons were developed based on culturally adapting the Common Elements Treatment Approach (CETA).

BEHAVIORAL

Family Spirit Nurture

The active control Family Spirit Nurture, is an evidence-based nutrition education curriculum that has been previously tested with Navajo communities which focuses on age-appropriate parental feeding practices, including snack routines, avoidance of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB) and promotion of water consumption.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Emily Haroz · Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

NONE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

14 Years

Sex

FEMALE

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2023-04-20

Primary Completion

2028-03-30

Completion

2028-06-30

Countries

• United States

Study Locations