Can peer counselors help women who use meth? vietnam trial tests friendship bench

NCT ID NCT06789523

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

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Status unknown
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First seen Sep 16, 2026 · Last updated Sep 17, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

Researchers in Vietnam are testing a peer-counseling program called Friendship Bench for women who use methamphetamine and have common mental health problems like depression, anxiety, or stress. The program trains peer workers to lead six weekly one-on-one sessions that help participants identify problems and find solutions. The pilot enrolls 100 women and measures whether the program is feasible, acceptable, and delivered as intended, along with changes in mental health symptoms.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
Friendship Bench, a peer-counseling program with six weekly one-on-one sessions
What this could lead to
If it works, this could give Vietnam and other lower-income countries a low-cost, peer-delivered way to reach women who use methamphetamine and struggle with depression or anxiety.
What could go wrong
This is a small pilot with 100 women, so it cannot prove the program works. Many participants may drop out, and the results may not hold in a larger trial or in other countries.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 100 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Jun 2025

Expected to finish

Aug 2029

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

18 years and older

Sex

Female participants only

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Adult women (\>=18 years old) * Moderate or greater risk for meth use (ASSIST ≥ 4) * Moderate or greater CMD symptom severity (Depression ≥ 10, Anxiety ≥ 8, and/or Stress ≥ 15 on DASS-21) Exclusion Criteria: * Severe psychotic disorders or other interfering problems that require specialty care; * Inability to understand study procedures by the research team's judgment.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

How to take part

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  1. The places running it

    1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

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  3. A doctor treating you

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Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Friendship Bench & Lighthouse

    RECRUITING

    Haiphong, Hai Phong, 100000, Vietnam

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