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Spiritual healing for veterans: new therapy targets moral injury

NCT ID NCT06230887

Disease control Sponsor: VA Office of Research and Development Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only This study
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 Results may not be published yet.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

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jul 20, 2026 · Last updated Jul 21, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study tests a group therapy program called Building Spiritual Strength for Veterans experiencing moral injury syndrome—a condition involving deep guilt, shame, or loss of meaning after traumatic events. About 200 Veterans will be randomly assigned to either this spiritually integrated therapy or a standard coping skills group. Researchers will measure changes in moral injury symptoms, depression, and daily functioning to see which approach works better and to create a toolkit for wider use in VA hospitals.

What this could mean

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

Active substance
a spiritually integrated group intervention called Building Spiritual Strength
What this could lead to
If successful, this could provide an effective, widely available treatment for moral injury syndrome in Veterans, potentially reducing suicide risk.
What could go wrong
The trial is relatively small (200 participants) and early-stage, so results may not generalize to all Veterans. The intervention may not outperform the control therapy.

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 200 people

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

Started

Jul 2024

Expected to finish

Jul 2028

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

A government agency

The lead sponsor is a US federal agency other than the NIH.

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

Anyone

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: Veteran status and: * (a) validation of any of the first three items on the Moral Injury and Distress Scale, which is consistent with probable MIS * (b) willingness to be randomized to either treatment condition * (c) stability on mental health medications for at least 8 weeks * (d) age of 18 years or older Exclusion Criteria: * (a) insufficient capacity to consent * (b) active psychosis or substance use at levels that would interfere with treatment, assessed via chart review, the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test - Concise (AUDIT-C) score, and the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) * (c) currently involved in evidence-based psychotherapy for MIS, or evidence-based psychotherapy for PTSD, assessed via chart review and intake interview * (d) managing any severe psychopathology that, in the opinion of the investigative team, requires immediate clinical attention, such as imminent suicide risk, assessed via the MINI and supplemental homicide risk questions.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

post-traumatic stress disorder

As listed by the trial registrant

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

Moral injury syndrome

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    5 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.

    Open the record ↗

  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Atlanta VA Medical and Rehab Center, Decatur, GA

    Decatur, Georgia, 30033-4004, United States

  • Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System , Little Rock, AR

    Little Rock, Arkansas, 72205, United States

  • Maine VA Medical Center, Augusta, ME

    Augusta, Maine, 04330, United States

  • Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, TX

    Houston, Texas, 77030-4211, United States

  • Minneapolis VA Health Care System, Minneapolis, MN

    Minneapolis, Minnesota, 55417-2309, United States