Adding brief depression counseling to tuberculosis care in South Africa
The Effectiveness and Cost-Effectiveness of Implementing Evidence-Based Depression Treatment within the TB Care Platform in South Africa: A Hybrid Effectiveness-Implementation Trial
This project will offer short interpersonal counseling to people with tuberculosis and depression at TB clinics in South Africa to help them complete treatment and feel better.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | New York State Psychiatric Institute Dba Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, INC NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-10687128 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would get brief interpersonal counseling (IPC) from trained clinic staff alongside your regular TB treatment. The work takes place in eight clinics in the Eastern Cape and plans to include about 1,410 people who have both TB and major depressive disorder. The team will compare outcomes like TB treatment completion, depression symptoms, and financial hardship between clinics offering IPC and usual care while studying how to deliver the counseling in routine services. They will also track costs to understand whether this approach could be affordable to scale up.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults receiving care at participating TB clinics in the Eastern Cape who have active tuberculosis and symptoms meeting major depressive disorder criteria.
Not a fit: People without TB or without depressive symptoms, or those who cannot attend counseling sessions, are unlikely to benefit from this intervention.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, adding brief counseling could improve depression symptoms, help people stay on TB treatment, reduce deaths and loss to follow-up, and lower catastrophic costs for patients.
How similar studies have performed: Brief interpersonal counseling delivered by non-specialist providers has shown benefit for depression in South Africa and other low-resource settings, though its direct impact on TB outcomes is less well tested.
Where this research is happening
New York, United States
- New York State Psychiatric Institute Dba Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, INC — New York, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sweetland, Annika Claire — New York State Psychiatric Institute Dba Research Foundation for Mental Hygiene, INC
- Study coordinator: Sweetland, Annika Claire
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.