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NCT Number: NCT07563868

Coaching as an Adjunct to Ketamine Therapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression

This study is being conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) to explore whether adding psychedelic coaching can enhance the effects of ketamine or esketamine maintenance treatment in individuals with treatment-resistant depression (TRD). The investigators are currently enrolling participants who are receiving ongoing maintenance intravenous (IV) ketamine or intranasal esketamine (Spravato) treatment at the MGH Ketamine Clinic. Participation in the study will involve adding coaching sessions to your existing ketamine maintenance treatment.

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Key information

Conditions

Treatment Resistant Depression (TRD) Behavior Behavioral Symptoms Depression Depressive Disorder Depressive Disorder, Treatment-Resistant Mental Disorders Mood Disorders

Age range

18 year and older

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States

Loading trial locations.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Age 18 years or older at the time of informed consent/study enrollment.
  • Ability to understand and provide informed consent.
  • Fluent in English (spoken and written).
  • Willingness to have coaching sessions recorded via HIPAA-compliant MGB approved video-based platform.
  • Has a QIDS-SR score ≥ 11, indicating at least moderate depressive symptom severity at screening visit.
  • Lifetime diagnosis of a depressive disorder according to the MINI.
  • In the maintenance phase of ketamine or esketamine treatment, defined as the period following the initial acute treatment series (typically 2 treatments per week for 3 weeks).
  • Patients must have completed at least 3 maintenance treatments prior to screening visit with a QIDS-SR score ≥ 11 noted from EPIC medical records from the 3 most recent maintenance treatments.
  • Currently receiving maintenance IV ketamine or intranasal esketamine at the MGH Ketamine Clinic, with at least one treatment administered within the past 8 weeks, and planning to continue to be an active patient at the MGH Ketamine Clinic for the duration of the study.
  • Has established care with a mental health provider (e.g., psychiatrist, therapist, or other licensed mental health clinician), and, if outside the MGB-healthcare system, agrees to sign a Release of Information form (ROI) with the study team.

Exclusion criteria

  • Presence of an unstable medical condition, as determined by the study clinician.
  • Significant neurocognitive impairment that impairs with individual's ability to maintain ADLs and would interfere with study participation, per study clinician judgment.
  • Newly initiated psychotherapy within the past 3 months.
  • Any condition or circumstance that, in the judgment of the Principal Investigator, makes participation unsafe or unsuitable.
  • Any psychiatric condition that is currently primary, clinically predominant to their depression, or insufficiently stable such that it would interfere with study participation, per clinician judgment.
  • Plan to switch from IV ketamine treatment to intranasal esketamine or plan to switch from intranasal esketamine to IV ketamine treatment at any point during study.
  • Suicidality determined by the judgment of the study clinicians at screen, with a plan to act in next 6 months.
  • A ≥25% reduction in QIDS total score from screen to baseline visit.

Treatment and study plan

Psychedelic Integration Coaching

Behavioral

Participation in the study will involve adding coaching sessions to existing ketamine maintenance treatment for patients receiving ongoing maintenance IV ketamine or IN esketamine treatment at MGH's Ketamine Clinic. If participants are eligible, they will be invited to participate in 12 weekly, 50-minute one-on-one coaching sessions conducted via Zoom. These sessions are designed to help participants process and integrate their experiences with ketamine treatment, to support personal growth and symptom improvement. The coaching is non-clinical, collaborative, and participant-directed, and is provided by trained psychedelic integration coaches from the Fireside Project.

Throughout the 3-month coaching period and again at a 1-month follow-up, participants will complete monthly study visits that include brief remote assessments with a study clinician, along with additional self-report questionnaires. These visits will take approximately 1 to 2 hours, depending on the time point.

Other names: Coaching, Psychedelic Coaching

Primary outcomes

  1. To assess the feasibility of adjunctive coaching during ketamine/esketamine maintenance treatment.

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at Month 3

    We will assess the feasibility of coaching, as indexed by at least 80% of participants (16 of 20 participants) completing 10 out of 12 coaching sessions. The investigators will also review all assessment procedures and calculate the percentage of completed assessments at each time point. In addition, the investigators will compute the number of participants for whom an AE occurred, along with their rate of occurrence, severity, and relationship to the study procedures.

  2. To assess the acceptability of adjunctive coaching during ketamine/esketamine maintenance treatment.

    Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at Month 3

    Acceptability will be assessed by calculating the mean and standard deviation of participant-reported net-promoter scores, which will range from 0 (would not recommend) to 10 (would definitely recommend). Additional acceptability metrics will include qualitative and quantitative responses to the post-coaching survey and the end-of-coaching survey.

Secondary outcomes

  1. To explore whether coaching is associated with a reduction in the frequency of ketamine/esketamine maintenance treatments (measured in days) over the 3-month study period and 1-month follow-up.

    Time frame: Baseline (3 ketamine treatments prior to enrollment), through the intervention (3 months after enrollment), and follow-up (1 month post-intervention)

    Coaching will be associated with a reduction in the frequency of ketamine maintenance treatments (measured in days) assessed through chart review of patients' 3 treatments prior to enrollment in study and following completion of study.

  2. To explore whether coaching is associated with a change in dose (measured in mg) and/or need for anxiolytic medications prior to ketamine/esketamine treatment.

    Time frame: Baseline (3 ketamine treatments prior to enrollment), through the intervention (3 months after enrollment), and follow-up (1 month post-intervention)

    Coaching will be associated with a reduction in the dose and/or need for anxiolytic medications (measured in mg) prior to ketamine/esketamine treatment, assessed through chart review of patients' 3 treatments prior to enrollment in study and following completion of study.

  3. To explore whether adjunctive coaching is associated with a change in depressive symptoms, as measured by the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) total score.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will be associated with a reduction in depressive symptoms (i.e., MADRS total scores) at Month 1, Month 2, and Month 3.

  4. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in International Trauma Questionaire (ITQ) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

  5. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in 5-item World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as 5-item World Health Organization Well-Being Index (WHO-5) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

  6. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology - Self Report (QIDS-SR) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology - Self Report (QIDS-SR) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

  7. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS-29) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS-29) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

  8. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

  9. To explore whether coaching is associated with improvements in Self-Compassion Scale - Short Form (SCS-SF) scores.

    Time frame: Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion

    Coaching will lead to improvements in secondary outcomes, including the as Self-Compassion Scale - Short Form (SCS-SF) assessed at Screening, Baseline, Month 1, Month 2, Month 3, and 1-Month Post Study Completion.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Franklin King, MD

CONTACT

[email protected]

Maren Nyer, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

6176434897

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Massachusetts General Hospital

Other

Collaborators

  • Fireside Project

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2026
Primary completion
2027
Study completion
2028
First posted
May 4, 2026
Registry last updated
Jul 23, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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