Tele-Self CBTI Trial

Study Summary

Insomnia is one of the most common complaints among service-members and Veterans of recent military conflicts. Insomnia has been shown to play a causal role in mental health, hypertension, obesity, and other health conditions, increasing risk for all-cause mortality. Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBTI) produces both short-term and sustained resolution of insomnia with fewer adverse side effects than medications, but access to behavioral sleep medicine expertise within the VA is very limited. This study compares Tele-Self CBTI to Health Education Control for improved insomnia severity among treatment-seeking Veterans with Insomnia. In this study, 200 participants will be randomized with a 50/50 chance to either Tele-Self CBTI or a Health Education Control condition. Eligible participants are Veterans who are: a) prescribed sleep medications; b) diagnosed with insomnia; and/or c) referred for clinic-based CBTI (but not yet treated) for insomnia. Participants will be identified using electronic health records (EHR) and telephone interviews. Participants' sleep will be assessed at three time points, at Baseline, 8 weeks and 6 months after Baseline. The Tele-Self CBTi intervention is comprised of two treatment components: 1) self-directed treatment via weekly readings from a treatment manual, and 2) weekly telephone-based nurse support contacts across a 8 week intervention period. Participants randomized to Tele-Self CBTI will complete 6 weekly readings in addition to having 6 weekly telephone contacts with a study nurse; each call lasting approximately 20 minutes. Patients randomized to Health Education Control (HEC) will receive a health education manual on 6 health topics. They will also complete 6 weekly readings from the HEC manual and receive 6 weekly telephone contacts from a study nurse. All participants will continue to receive usual medical care while participating in the study. Following completion of this 6 month study, participants randomized

Primary Outcome

Insomnia Severity Index (ISI): The ISI is recommended as the standard for self-reported insomnia symptoms, and will be used as the primary outcome measure. The ISI is a 7-item questionnaire providing a global measure of perceived insomnia severity. Each item is rated on a 5-point Likert scale and the total score ranges from 0 (no reported symptoms) to 28 (highest insomnia severity symptoms). The following guidelines are recommended for interpreting the total score: 0-7 (no clinical insomnia), 8-

Interventions

• BEHAVIORAL Tele-Self CBTI
• OTHER Health Education Control