I did a story yesterdayabout online therapy, and then wouldn't you know it, a piece of research comes out on the very same subject.
Researchers at the University of New South Wales and St. Vincent's Hospital in New Zealand found that online treatment was as effective as face-to-face therapy for such mental illnesses as anxiety, social phobias and depression. Here are some highlights as reported by Science Alert in Australia:
A paper outlining the results of the latest generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) trial appears next month in the Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry.
The researchers say the initial pilot investigations were so successful participants are now being sought for new, larger trials of the Worry and Shyness programs. The clinic expects to have treated more than 1,200 people in online trials by the end of the year.
"Dr. [Nick]Titov said the results achieved by all three programs – which involved simple online lessons, regular emails and online discussion forums – surprised everyone involved.
'After completing the various programs, more than 70 per cent of participants diagnosed with generalised anxiety disorder no longer met that diagnostic criteria. In the Shyness program 85 per cent of participants recorded good improvement in their scores on measures of social phobia, and more than a third of depressed patients no longer met the criteria to be diagnosed as clinically depressed,' Dr Titov said.
While the internet programs may never completely replace face-to-face therapies, they have the potential to significantly enhance the capacity of existing services …
'Only 35 per cent of people with anxiety or depression seek treatment over a 12 month period, and only one in 10 sees a psychologist,' he said. 'Internet-based programs may play an important role in increasing those numbers.'
The researchers said it was still unclear why the internet programs were so effective.
The researchers also argue that the online sessions are cheaper than traditional treatments, and requiredmuch less time from clinicians.
Somequestions I have: Were the participants getting any other types of treatment or just online therapy? How did they measure compliance — how many of the participants actually completed all the sessions they were supposed to?How severe were the illnesses of the participants — did peoplewith severe depression or anxiety recoverhave the same recovery rate as people with mild to moderate depression or anxiety? How many other studies are that reflect the same or a similar outcome?
I'm interested in learning more about this because it would be greatto have a treatment option that works for those moms or moms-to-be that don't have access to face-to-face therapy because of their location or for some other reason…stay tuned …
