Abstract
BackgroundA major barrier to the widespread dissemination of psychological treatments is the way that therapists are trained. The current method is not scalable.ObjectiveOur objective was to conduct a proof-of-concept study of Web-centered training, a scalable online method for training therapists.MethodsThe Irish Health Service Executive identified mental health professionals across the country whom it wanted to be trained in a specific psychological treatment for eating disorders. These therapists were given access to a Web-centered training program in transdiagnostic cognitive behavior therapy for eating disorders. The training was accompanied by a scalable form of support consisting of brief encouraging telephone calls from a nonspecialist. The trainee therapists completed a validated measure of therapist competence before and after the training.ResultsOf 102 therapists who embarked upon the training program, 86 (84.3%) completed it. There was a substantial increase in their competence scores following the training (mean difference 5.84, 95% Cl –6.62 to –5.05; P<.001) with 42.5% (34/80) scoring above a predetermined cut-point indicative of a good level of competence.ConclusionsWeb-centered training proved feasible and acceptable and resulted in a marked increase in therapist competence scores. If these findings are replicated, Web-centered training would provide a means of simultaneously training large numbers of geographically dispersed trainees at low cost, thereby overcoming a major obstacle to the widespread dissemination of psychological treatments.
Highlights
Psychological treatments are difficult to disseminate and implement [1,2]
Web-centered training proved feasible and acceptable and resulted in a marked increase in therapist competence scores. If these findings are replicated, Web-centered training would provide a means of simultaneously training large numbers of geographically dispersed trainees at low cost, thereby overcoming a major obstacle to the widespread dissemination of psychological treatments. (J Med Internet Res 2017;19(6):e214) doi:10.2196/jmir
An additional obstacle is the way in which therapists are trained. This typically involves a therapist with generic training in psychological treatment delivery attending a specialist training workshop given by an expert and practicing the treatment under the supervision of someone experienced at delivering the treatment [3]
Summary
Psychological treatments are difficult to disseminate and implement [1,2]. An additional obstacle is the way in which therapists are trained. This typically involves a therapist with generic training in psychological treatment delivery attending a specialist training workshop given by an expert and practicing the treatment under the supervision of someone experienced at delivering the treatment [3]. 6 | e214 | p.1 (page number not for citation purposes). To address these problems, Web-centered training was devised [4]. A major barrier to the widespread dissemination of psychological treatments is the way that therapists are trained.
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