Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40839616›Full record

Trial reportPloS one2025

Effectiveness of a multilevel intervention to improve mental health of hospital workers: The SEEGEN multicenter cluster randomized controlled trial.

Nadine Mulfinger, Marc N Jarczok, Andreas Müller, Melanie Genrich-Hasken, Britta Worringer, Janna Katharina Küllenberg, Florian Junne, Felicitas Rapp, Monika A Rieger, Eva Rothermund-Nassir and 14 more

Abstract readRandomized Controlled TrialMulticenter Study
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in PloS one, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Workplace Mental Health Programs for Healthcare Workers: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2026
    Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

24 authors.

Nadine MulfingerDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0567-1386
Marc N JarczokDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6055-385X
Andreas MüllerInstitute of Psychology, Work and Organizational Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
Melanie Genrich-HaskenInstitute of Psychology, Work and Organizational Psychology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg-Essen, Germany.
Britta WorringerInstitute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Centre for Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Janna Katharina KüllenbergInstitute for Medical Psychology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Florian JunneDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.
Felicitas RappDepartment of Anaesthesiology and Intensive Care, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Monika A RiegerInstitute for Occupational and Social Medicine and Health Services Research, University Hospital Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
Eva Rothermund-NassirDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Ute ZiegenhainClinic of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry/Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Nicole R HanderDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Imad MaatoukDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine, University Hospital Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.
Madeleine HelaßDepartment for General Internal Medicine and Psychosomatics, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Martin PetersDepartment of Psychiatry II, Ulm University and BKH Günzburg, Günzburg, Germany.
Anja SanderInstitute of Medical Biometry, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Regina KrisamInstitute of Medical Biometry, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Ronald LimprechtInstitute of Medical Biometry, University of Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Elena GesangChair of Business Administration, in particular Work, Human Resource Management and Organization Studies, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Sascha A RuhleDepartment of Human Resource Studies, Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Tilburg University, Tilburg, the Netherlands.
Stefan SüßChair of Business Administration, in particular Work, Human Resource Management and Organization Studies, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Bernd PuschnerDepartment of Psychiatry II, Ulm University and BKH Günzburg, Günzburg, Germany.
Peter AngererInstitute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Centre for Health and Society, Faculty of Medicine, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Harald GündelDepartment of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionHospital workers are at high risk for stress-related mental health issues and are considered a vulnerable workforce in most Western countries. Although multilevel interventions that address individual and organizational factors show promise, there is limited robust evidence of their effectiveness in hospital settings. This study evaluated the SEEGEN trial, a cluster-randomized controlled trial conducted in the German healthcare sector, to assess the effectiveness of a structured multilevel intervention designed to reduce psychosocial stress and to promote mental well-being among hospital employees. The intervention included five modules that targeted different hierarchical levels, sources of interpersonal and structural stress, and potentially vulnerable life stages. These modules were: (i) top management training, (ii) dilemma management - coping by taking responsibility, (iii) promoting stress-preventive relational leadership competence, (iv) reconciling work and family life, and (v) staying healthy at work.

methodsThe study was conducted at three clinical centers in Germany and included 18 clusters with a total of N = 415 participants. The clusters were randomly assigned to either an intervention or a wait-list control group. The primary outcome was psychological strain (Irritation Scale; IRR), and the secondary outcomes were mental well-being (WHO-5) and perceived psychosocial safety climate, (PSC-12). Intervention effects were estimated using a two-level linear analysis of covariance. Changes from baseline to the 11-month follow-up were analyzed.

resultsThe intervention had no statistically significant effect on the primary or secondary outcomes.

conclusionsThe lack of significant effects may be attributed to low participation rates, an insufficient intervention dosage, and contextual factors, such as the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and staffing shortages in the participating hospitals. Although the intervention cannot currently be recommended for widespread implementation, the study provides valuable insights into developing, delivering, and overcoming the challenges of multilevel workplace interventions in healthcare settings.

Indexed as

Mental HealthOccupational StressPersonnel, HospitalStress, PsychologicalAdaptation, PsychologicalAdultCOVID-19FemaleGermanyHumansMaleMiddle AgedWorkplace

Identifiers

PMID40839616
PMCPMC12370060

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.