A cluster-randomized trial of a college health center-based alcohol and sexual violence intervention (GIFTSS): Design, rationale, and baseline sample

Introduction Sexual violence (SV) on college campuses is common, especially alcohol-related SV. This is a 2-arm cluster randomized controlled trial to test a brief intervention to reduce risk for alcohol-related sexual violence (SV) among students receiving care from college health centers (CHCs). Intervention CHC staff are trained to deliver universal SV education to all students seeking care, to facilitate patient and provider comfort in discussing SV and related abusive experiences (including the role of alcohol). Control sites provide participants with information about drinking responsibly. Methods Across 28 participating campuses (12 randomized to intervention and 16 to control), 2292 students seeking care at CHCs complete surveys prior to their appointment (baseline), immediately after (exit), 4 months later (T2) and one year later (T3). The primary outcome is change in recognition of SV and sexual risk. Among those reporting SV exposure at baseline, changes in SV victimization, disclosure, and use of SV services are additional outcomes. Intervention effects will be assessed using generalized linear mixed models that account for clustering of repeated observations both within CHCs and within students. Results Slightly more than half of the participating colleges have undergraduate enrollment of ≥ 3000 students; two-thirds are public and almost half are urban. Among participants there were relatively more Asian (10 v 1%) and Black/African American (13 v 7%) and fewer White (58 v 74%) participants in the intervention compared to control. Conclusions This study will offer the first formal assessment for SV prevention in the CHC setting.