NCT07052357

Intern Health Study 2025

• Status: Enrolling By Invitation
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 1,000 (estimated)
• Sponsor: University of Michigan · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of using a reinforcement learning algorithm to determine the optimal content of a mobile health intervention (message delivered via smartphone) for improving the mood, physical activity, and sleep of medical interns.

Detailed description

Due to their high workloads, less sleep and physical activity and other stressors, medical interns suffer from depression at higher rates than the general population. The goal of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of a mobile health intervention intending to help prevent the degradation of health behaviors and the development of depression. The intervention sends mobile phone notifications which aim to help interns improve their mood, maintain physical activity, and obtain adequate sleep during their internship year. A reinforcement learning algorithm will use prior survey, daily mood, and wearable data to make three types of choices each day: 1) whether to send a message or not on a given day, and, if sending a message, 2) the therapeutic strategy (Behavioral Strategy, Cognitive Strategy, Mindfulness, Motivational Interviewing, Distanced Self-Talk), and 3) whether or not to include feedback (the intern's own data) in the message.

Conditions

• Depression - Major Depressive Disorder
• Mood
• Sleep
• Physical Activity

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Intern Health Study behavioral change mobile notification	The study's mobile app will be used to deliver push notifications. The notifications appear on the participant's phone lock screen. The notifications include 3 categories: mood notifications, activity notifications, sleep notifications. Mood notifications aim to increase the participant's mood. Activity notifications aim to increase the participant's physical activity. Sleep notifications aim to increase the participant's sleep duration. All notifications are categorized as one of five therapeutic approaches: 1) CBT-Behavioral, 2) CBT-Cognitive, 3) Distanced Self-Talk, 4) Mindfulness, 5) Motivational Interviewing.

Timeline

• Start date: 2025-04-03
• Primary completion: 2026-06-30
• Completion: 2026-06-30
• First posted: 2025-07-04
• Last updated: 2025-07-04

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States