Comparison of Social Media-Based and Online Training in Grief Counseling Education

Comparison of Social Media-Based and Online Training in Grief Counseling Education: A Randomized Controlled Head-to-Head Study

This randomized trial aims to compare the effectiveness of two digital educational approaches for perinatal grief counseling training among midwives and nurses working in perinatal care settings in Türkiye: a social media-based education program delivered through Instagram and an online education program delivered through Zoom. Both groups will receive the same six-module perinatal grief counseling education content, but through different delivery methods.

Participants will be randomly assigned to one of the two study groups. Outcomes will be assessed before the intervention, immediately after completion of the 6-week training program, and 4 weeks after the intervention. The study will evaluate changes in participants' competency and confidence in providing perinatal grief care and compare the sustainability of learning outcomes between the two digital education models.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Bereavement; Perinatal Grief; Perinatal Loss
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Social Media-Based Perinatal Grief Counseling Education; Behavioral: Online Perinatal Grief Counseling Education

Detailed Description

Perinatal loss can have profound psychological effects on affected families. Midwives and nurses play an important role in providing emotional support and grief care following perinatal loss. However, healthcare professionals may have limited training and confidence in providing perinatal grief counseling. Structured education may improve their competency and confidence in delivering bereavement care.

This study will compare a competency-based perinatal grief counseling education program delivered through two digital models: social media-based learning using Instagram and synchronous online learning using Zoom. The educational content was developed from a previously validated competency framework established through a Delphi consensus study. Both groups will receive the same six-module educational content and learning objectives; only the mode of delivery will differ.

The study is designed as a two-arm randomized trial. Participants will complete assessments before the intervention, immediately after the training, and four weeks after completion of the intervention. The study will examine whether the digital delivery method affects competency and confidence in providing perinatal grief care and whether the learning outcomes are maintained over time.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 72
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Ayşe İrem PhD Gökçek, Dr; Phone Number: 05356476880; Email: gokcek.airem@gmail.com

Study Locations

• Turkey (Türkiye)
  • Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Istinye University, Faculty of Health Sciences
    • Contact: Ayşe İrem Gökçek, Dr,PhD; Phone Number: 05356476880; Email: gokcek.airem@gmail.com

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Midwives or nurses currently working in perinatal care settings in Türkiye.
• Aged 18 years or older.
• Own a smartphone and have regular internet access.
• Able to actively use Instagram and Zoom.
• Provide informed consent to participate in the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Previous training in perinatal grief counseling.
• Failure to participate regularly in the educational intervention.
• Failure to complete the study assessments.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Social Media-Based Education Group; Participants in this group will receive a six-week perinatal grief counseling education program through a private Instagram account. Educational content will be delivered using posts, stories, reels, videos, quizzes, and interactive activities.	Behavioral: Social Media-Based Perinatal Grief Counseling Education; A six-week structured perinatal grief counseling education program delivered through Instagram using asynchronous posts, stories, reels, videos, quizzes, and interactive activities.
Experimental: Online Education Group; Participants in this group will receive the same six-module perinatal grief counseling education program through synchronous Zoom sessions over six weeks. Sessions will include presentations, case discussions, interactive activities, and role-play exercises.	Behavioral: Online Perinatal Grief Counseling Education; A six-week structured perinatal grief counseling education program delivered through synchronous Zoom sessions, including presentations, case discussions, interactive activities, and role-play exercises.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Perinatal Bereavement Care Competency	This scale was developed by Shen et al. in 2022 to measure the grief care competence of midwives providing care to women experiencing perinatal death. Gökçek and Keser Özcan established its Turkish validity and reliability. The scale consists of 23 items and has six sub-dimensions: Maintaining Faith, Knowing, Being Together, Maintaining Esteem, Empowerment, and Self-Regulation. Each item is answered using a five-point Likert scale (Strongly Disagree=1, Disagree=2, Undecided=3, Agree=4, Strongly Agree=5), resulting in a minimum score of 23 and a maximum score of 115. Higher scores indicate greater competence in perinatal grief counselling. The Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the scale ranged from 0.69 to 0.87 for the sub-dimensions and was 0.92 for the entire scale.	Baseline, immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention, and 4 weeks after the intervention.
Perinatal Bereavement Care Confidence	This scale, developed by Kalu et al. in 2019, measures midwives' and nurses' perceived competence in providing care to families experiencing perinatal loss. Dursun and Akkuş conducted the Turkish adaptation and reliability study of the scale. The scale consists of 35 items across four sub-dimensions: knowledge of grief support, grief support skills, self-awareness, and organizational support. Items are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 5=strongly agree). Some statements are reverse scored (e.g., items 7, 11, and 33). Each sub-dimension is evaluated independently, and the total score is not calculated. In the original scale development study, the Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the sub-dimensions ranged from 0.70 to 0.87.	Baseline, immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention, and 4 weeks after the intervention.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Participant Evaluation of the Educational Program	Participants' evaluation of the educational program using a researcher-developed Education Evaluation Form.	Immediately after completion of the 6-week intervention.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Istinye University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): July 27, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 31, 2026
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 30, 2026

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 20, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 20, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 23, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 24, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 23, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: EBE_ISU_1

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No