NCT07383831

Task-Shifting for Youth Suicide Prevention

Youth Mentor-Led Brief Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Youth Suicide Prevention

• Status: Not Yet Recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 46 (estimated)
• Sponsor: Boston College · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 12 Years – 17 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

The goal of this randomized clinical trial is to examine the feasibility, acceptability, and mechanisms of change of a brief adaptation of Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents (IPT-A), adapted and task-shifted to lay providers (mentors, youth trusted adults) in youth community centers (YCCs) as an upstream approach to suicide. It focuses on Hispanic adolescents ages 12-17 enrolled in these YCCs. The pragmatic clinical trial will evaluate the acceptability and feasibility of adapted IPT-A delivered by mentors in YCCs and whether adapted IPT-A impacts mechanisms of change (depression symptoms, belongingness, and feeling like a burden to others). The main questions it aims to answer are: * Is adpated IPT-A, when delivered by trained youth mentors, feasible and acceptable in youth community centers? * Does adapted IPT-A target key risk factors (e.g., depressive symptoms, low belongingness, and perceived burdensomeness) associated with suicide ideation? Researchers will compare adolescents randomized to adapted IPT-A (6 sessions) delivered by a trained youth mentor with those receiving usual services at the community center (one individual session focused on active listening). Participants will: * Be screened for subthreshold depression using the PHQ-9 adolescent version. Adolescents will be included if they score between 4 and 9 (mild depression). Adolescents with a PHQ-9 score of 10 or higher will not be eligible and will be referred to a licensed mental health provider for appropriate care. * Be randomized to adapted IPT-A or usual care. * Youth in the intervention arm will participate in 6 weekly adapted IPT-A sessions with a trained youth mentor focused on education, affect identification, and interpersonal skills.

Conditions

• Suicidal Ideation
• Depressive Symptoms
• Adolescent Mental Health

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
BEHAVIORAL	Adapted Brief Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents (IPT-A LAZOS)	Adolescents in this intervention will receive 6 weekly sessions of an adaptation of Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents (IPT-A) delivered by trained youth mentors in youth community centers. The adaptation used a community-participatory research approach to culturally and contextually meet the needs of immigrant-origin inner-city adolescents. The adapted intervention keeps core elements (education, affect identification, and interpersonal skills) and bolsters these skills to target belongingness and burdensomeness, which are factors associated with suicide ideation. Sessions follow a structured, manualized approach. The goal is to reduce depressive symptoms, increase sense of belongingness, and decrease perceived burdensomeness among adolescents with subthreshold depression (score between 4-9 in the PHQ-A).
OTHER	Usual Community Center Services	Participants in this arm will continue to receive the standard youth programs and services offered by the youth community centers, including mentoring, academic support, and recreational activities. They will not receive BIPT-A.

Timeline

• Start date: 2026-08-01
• Primary completion: 2027-12-01
• Completion: 2028-07-31
• First posted: 2026-02-03
• Last updated: 2026-02-03

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States