People who want to improve their mental health can now take a new online programme being offered by Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust.
The free treatment is from CPFT’s Psychological Wellbeing Service and is available to anyone over the age of 17 who is registered with a GP in Cambridgeshire or Peterborough.
The online system, SilverCloud, can help those experiencing stress, depression or a wide range of anxiety disorders.
Many countries are exploring the potential of telehealth interventions to manage the rising number of people with chronic disorders. However, evidence of the effectiveness of telehealth is ambiguous. Based on an evidence-based conceptual framework, we developed an integrated telehealth service (the Healthlines Service) for chronic disorders and assessed its effectiveness in patients with depression. We aimed to compare the Healthlines Depression Service plus usual care with usual care alone. Please contact the library to receive a copy of this article - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
Given the high prevalence and considerable disease burden associated with depression, attention has been shifting more and more to its prevention, with recent meta-analyses suggesting that a potentially fruitful avenue to explore might involve targeting individuals with sub-threshold symptomatology (van Zoonen et al., 2014).
In a new large randomised controlled trial (RCT) published yesterday in JAMA, Buntrock and co-authors investigated whether a web-based guided self-help intervention could help prevent the onset of major depressive disorder (MDD) in a German adult population with sub-threshold depression.
Internet-based interventions are seen as an important potential strategy to improve accessibility and affordability of high quality treatments in mental healthcare. A growing number of studies have demonstrated the clinical efficacy of internet-based treatment for mood disorders, but scientific evidence for the application in routine specialised mental healthcare settings is limited. Also, little is known about the clinical and health-economic benefits of blended treatment, where online interventions are integrated with face-to-face treatment of depression in one treatment protocol. The primary aim of this study is to investigate the clinical and cost-effectiveness of blended Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (bCBT) for depression, as compared to treatment as usual (TAU) in specialised routine mental healthcare in the Netherlands. This trial is part of the E-COMPARED project which has a broader perspective, focussing on primary and specialised care in eight European countries.
Computerised cognitive behavioural therapy (CCBT) has been shown to be an efficacious treatment for depression. A recent meta-analysis of 9 studies showed a large mean effect size superiority over control group (effect size=0.86, number needed to treat=2), good adherence (69%) and benefits were evident at follow-up at a median of 26 weeks. In contrast, REEACT, a major study which compared usual general practitioner (GP) care versus usual GP care plus access to 1 of 2 pioneering CCBT courses detected no differences between the groups. We present the results and discuss possible explanations for these findings. In all 3 groups, usual care was extensive (9 visits in 12 months, 80% on medication, 8–23% getting psychological sessions). Adherence to CCBT courses was very poor (17%). Perhaps the surfeit of services meant there was no need for CCBT. Perhaps neither of the 2 CCBT courses encouraged adherence. What is certain is that this study did not test the potential of these CCBT courses to produce change in patients with depression presenting in primary care. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
There has been limited research on therapeutic alliance in the context of therapist-assisted Internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) when delivered in clinical practice. The present study investigated therapeutic alliance in ICBT delivered to patients seeking treatment for symptoms of depression (n = 83) or generalized anxiety (n = 112) as part of an open dissemination trial. Login using your SSSFT NHS OpenAthens for full text. SSOTP - request a copy of the article from the library - http://bit.ly/1Xyazai
Two £25 vouchers are up for grabs in the library’s ‘Making the Most of Information’ survey.
To take part, just visit http://goo.gl/AdN4ok by Friday 19th February.
Despite being ‘everyday technology’, the Internet and telephone are under-utilised in helping meet the challenges of improving access to services. The Serenity Programme enables people to receive psychological therapy at home, using the telephone and Internet.
Users decide when and where they will use the Programme. The programme is delivered in North Wales in partnership with Mind (Aberconwy) and Parabl (http://www.parabl.org.uk/), a third-sector provider of mental health services.
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