Can a social Worker-Led program ease depression while patients wait for psychiatric care?
NCT ID NCT07064551
First seen Jul 21, 2026 · Last updated Jul 22, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This trial tests whether a medical-social collaboration model—where trained clinical social workers deliver CBT-based stepped-care interventions—can reduce depressive symptoms in middle-aged and older adults awaiting their first psychiatric appointment. Participants receive either the stepped-care intervention or a self-management booklet. The study tracks changes in depression, anxiety, loneliness, and other mental health outcomes every three months until their psychiatric visit.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Cognitive behavioural therapy-based stepped-care intervention
- What this could lead to
- If effective, this model could provide a practical, scalable way to support older adults with depression while they wait for psychiatric care, reducing symptoms and improving quality of life.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small trial (192 participants) testing a behavioral intervention, so results may not generalize widely. The intervention depends on trained social workers, which may limit reproducibility in other settings.
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
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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
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About 192 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Jun 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jun 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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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
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45 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Currently awaiting psychiatric services provided by the Hospital Authority * Have depressive symptoms of at least mild severity * Able to provide informed consent Exclusion Criteria: * A known history of autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, schizophrenia-spectrum disorder, bipolar disorder, Parkinson's disease, or dementia * Imminent suicidal risk (temporary exclusion) * Communication difficulties that preclude participation
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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
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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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
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The University of Hong Kong
RECRUITINGHong Kong, Hong Kong
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