PTSD treatment delivered by your primary care nurse
Official title: A Hybrid Implementation-Effectiveness Trial of Nurse-Delivered Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Treatment in Primary Care
Run by Rush University Medical Center · NCT07430657 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This will test whether nurses trained to deliver a short, four-session trauma therapy can help primary care patients who develop PTSD after a recent life-threatening heart or stroke event.
Quick facts
| Study type | Interventional |
|---|---|
| Ages | 18 Years and up |
| Sex | All |
| Enrollment | 100 (estimated) |
| Sponsor | Rush University Medical Center Academic / other |
| Locations | 2 sites (Chicago, Illinois and 1 other locations) |
| Status | Recruiting |
| Started | March 30, 2026 |
| Main results expected | June 2028 |
| Study ends | September 2029 |
| Registry record updated | April 29, 2026 |
| Trial ID | NCT07430657 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
Is this trial a fit for you?
✓Likely a good fit
Ideal candidates are Rush primary care patients with PTSD symptoms (PCL-5 ≥28 and endorsed trauma) following a life-threatening cardiovascular event within the past 90 days.
✕Probably not a fit
Patients with acute safety risks (for example active suicidal ideation), those already receiving psychotherapy for PTSD, or those lacking decisional capacity are excluded and unlikely to benefit from this program.
A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.
What this trial studies
This Type 2 hybrid implementation-effectiveness trial will enroll about 100 primary care patients who develop PTSD symptoms after a life-threatening cardiovascular event. Participants at Rush University Medical Center sites are randomized to NurseNET—a manualized, nurse-delivered four-session Narrative Exposure Therapy integrated into primary care—or to usual referral to PTSD treatment. The trial measures PTSD symptoms, functional outcomes, and implementation metrics such as feasibility and acceptability of nurse delivery. Safety procedures include screening out participants with acute safety risks or current PTSD psychotherapy and monitoring capacity to consent.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, NurseNET could expand access to effective, brief PTSD therapy by letting trained primary care nurses provide treatment close to where patients already receive care.
How similar studies have gone: Narrative Exposure Therapy has evidence as an effective trauma intervention and other task-shifting models where nurses deliver mental health care have shown promise, but nurse-delivered NET in primary care for recent cardiovascular event survivors is relatively novel.
Who can join: the full rules
Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria: * o PTSD + trauma exposure (PCL-5 score ≥28, plus trauma endorsed on LEC-5/CAPS) * Life-threatening CV event in the last 90 days (including myocardial infarction/heart attack, acute cerebrovascular accident/stroke, sudden cardiac arrest, acute decompensated heart failure, or life-threatening arrhythmia requiring cardioversion or defibrillation). * Primary care patient at Rush University Medical Center Exclusion Criteria: * o Safety risk (documented suicidal ideation/need for acute psychiatric care) * NET conflict (actively receiving psychotherapy/PTSD treatment) * Cognitive/decisional non-capacity (University of California, San Diego Brief Assessment of Capacity to Consent \[UBACC\] ≤ 14.5)
Where it's running
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Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, Illinois, United States Recruiting -
Rush University Medical Center
Brookfield, Wisconsin, United States Recruiting
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How to take part
- Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
- Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
- Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.