Can a phone app calm Firefighters' minds? new study aims to find out
NCT ID NCT06518616
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether a 10-day meditation program delivered through a smartphone app can reduce anxiety and depression in firefighters. About 192 career firefighters will either use the meditation app or a health education app for 10 days. Researchers will measure changes in distress levels to see if the meditation approach is effective.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- meditation intervention (prerecorded audio units via smartphone app)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a simple, accessible way for firefighters to manage stress and reduce anxiety and depression symptoms.
- What could go wrong
- This is a Phase 2 trial with 192 participants, so results are preliminary. The meditation is only 10 days, and benefits may not last or apply to all firefighters.
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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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- 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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Dec 2024
- Expected to finish
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Feb 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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18 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.
Show the full entry requirements Hide 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: 1) currently employed as a career firefighter, 2) 18 or older, 3) speak and understand English, and 4) own a smartphone (iPhone or Android) able to download and run the intervention apps. Exclusionary factors: 1) diagnosis of an illness requiring use of corticosteroids (e.g., asthma), and 2) have ongoing or past regular meditation experience in the last 4 years (i.e. more than two meditation session \[completed or attempted\] per year either with a group or individually), as determined by the PI.
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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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University of Arizona
RECRUITINGTucson, Arizona, 85721, United States
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