Telephone-administered Cognitive-behavioral Therapy Research Articles

A randomized noninferiority trial evaluating remotely-delivered stepped care for depression using internet cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and telephone CBT

This trial examined whether a stepped care program for depression, which initiated treatment with internet cognitive behavioral therapy, including telephone and messaging support, and stepped up non-responders to telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (tCBT), was noninferior, less costly to deliver, and as acceptable to patients compared to tCBT alone. Adults with a diagnosis of major depressive episode (MDE) were randomized to receive up to 20 weeks of stepped care or tCBT. Stepped care (n = 134) was noninferior to tCBT (n = 136) with an end-of-treatment effect size of d = 0.03 and a 6-month post-treatment effect size of d = −0.07 [90% CI 0.29 to 0.14]. Therapist time in stepped care was 5.26 (SD = 3.08) hours versus 10.16 (SD 4.01) for tCBT (p < 0.0001), with a delivery cost difference of $-364.32 [95% CI $-423.68 to $-304.96]. There was no significant difference in pre-treatment preferences (p = 0.10) or treatment dropout (39 in stepped care; 27 in tCBT; p = 0.14). tCBT patients were significantly more satisfied than stepped care patients with the treatment they received (p < 0.0001). These findings indicate that stepped care was less costly to deliver, but no less effective than tCBT. There was no significant difference in treatment preference or completion, however satisfaction with treatment was higher in tCBT than stepped care. Trial registrationclinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT01906476.

Personalized Telemedicine for Depression in Parkinson's Disease: A Pilot Trial.

High rates of depression are observed in Parkinson's disease, and limited access to care complicates management. The purpose of this pilot project was to evaluate the feasibility and impact of a personalized cognitive-behavioral telemedicine program for depression in Parkinson's disease (dPD). Thirty-four individuals with dPD and their carepartners participated in this pilot study. A 10-module self-help workbook, tailored to the unique needs of the dPD population, was created to be used as either a stand-alone intervention, with minimal therapist support, or a supplement to formal telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy sessions. Improvements in depression, anxiety, quality of life, sleep, negative thoughts, and caregiver burden were observed over the course of the 4-month study, independent of treatment modality (guided self-help vs formal telephone-based psychotherapy). Future research will utilize randomized controlled designs and continue to focus on delivery models that can improve access to this and other evidence-based mental health interventions for dPD.

Effect of a Telephone-administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for the Management of Depression, Anxiety, and Chronic Illness Anticipated Stigma in Parkinson's Disease

Purpose: Parkinson’s disease (PD) has a high incidence of psychiatric comorbidity, specifically depression and anxiety. This study examined the effectiveness of group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in treating depression and anxiety. Methods: The study included 42 participants, aged between 52 and 77 years, who were diagnosed with idiopathic Parkinson’s disease (IPD) and reported suffering from depression and anxiety. Patients were attending a department of outpatient neurology at D University Schools of Medicine in B Metropolitan city. A structured telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy was conducted for eight weeks. A repeated measure ANOVA was used to analyze results at pretest, post-test, and four weeks follow up. Results: According to service method, there were significant differences between the two groups in depression, anxiety and stigma was significant difference between time (p<.05). Analysis of the interaction between time and service method revealed significant differences in depression and anxiety (p<.05). Conclusion: The results suggest that telephoneadministered cognitive behavioral therapy may be effective and may provide opportunity to adapt to individual needs for treating depression and anxiety in patients with Parkinson’s disease.

The Relationship Between Telephone-Administered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Depression and Neuropsychological Functioning in Parkinson’s Disease

This letter is the first to describe the impact of telephone-based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) for depression on neuropsychological functioning in Parkinson’s disease. Telephone-administered CBT was associated with improvements in verbal memory following 10 weeks of treatment. Baseline verbal and working memory were related to depression improvement over time.

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy in Depressed Primary Care Patients with Co-Occurring Problematic Alcohol Use: Effect of Telephone-Administered vs. Face-to-Face Treatment—A Secondary Analysis

This secondary analysis of a larger study compared adherence to telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT) vs. face-to-face CBT and depression outcomes in depressed primary care patients with co-occurring problematic alcohol use. To our knowledge, T-CBT has never been directly compared to face-to-face CBT in such a sample of primary care patients. Participants were randomized in a 1:1 ratio to face-to-face CBT or T-CBT for depression. Participants receiving T-CBT (n = 50) and face-to-face CBT (n = 53) were compared at baseline, end of treatment (week 18), and three-month and six-month follow-ups. Face-to-face CBT and T-CBT groups did not significantly differ in age, sex, ethnicity, marital status, educational level, severity of depression, antidepressant use, and total score on the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Face-to-face CBT and T-CBT groups were similar on all treatment adherence outcomes and depression outcomes at all time points. T-CBT and face-to-face CBT had similar treatment adherence and efficacy for the treatment of depression in depressed primary care patients with co-occurring problematic alcohol use. When targeting patients who might have difficulties in accessing care, primary care clinicians may consider both types of CBT delivery when treating depression in patients with co-occurring problematic alcohol use.

Therapeutic alliance in face-to-face and telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy.

Telephone-administered therapies have emerged as an alternative method of delivery for the treatment of depression, yet concerns persist that the use of the telephone may have a deleterious effect on therapeutic alliance. The purpose of this study was to compare therapeutic alliance in clients receiving cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for depression by telephone (T-CBT) or face-to-face (FtF-CBT). We randomized 325 participants to receive 18 sessions of T-CBT or FtF-CBT. The Working Alliance Inventory (WAI) was administered at Weeks 4 and 14. Depression was measured during treatment and over 1 year posttreatment follow-up using the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and Patient Health Questionnaire-9. There were no significant differences in client or therapist WAI between T-CBT or FtF-CBT (Cohen's f² ranged from 0 to .013, all ps > .05). All WAI scores predicted depression end of treatment outcomes (Cohen's f² ranged from .009 to .06, all ps < .02). The relationship between the WAI and depression outcomes did not vary by treatment group (Cohen's f² ranged from 0 to .004, ps > .07). The WAI did not significantly predict depression during posttreatment follow-up (all ps > .12). Results from this analysis do not support the hypothesis that the use of the telephone to provide CBT reduces therapeutic alliance relative to FtF-CBT.

Evidence-based guideline: Assessment and management of psychiatric disorders in individuals with MS

To make evidence-based recommendations for screening, diagnosing, and treating psychiatric disorders in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). We reviewed the literature (1950 to August 2011) and evaluated the available evidence. Clinicians may consider using the Center for Neurologic Study Emotional Lability Scale to screen for pseudobulbar affect (Level C). Clinicians may consider the Beck Depression Inventory and a 2-question tool to screen for depressive disorders and the General Health Questionnaire to screen for broadly defined emotional disturbances (Level C). Evidence is insufficient to support/refute the use of other screening tools, the possibility that somatic/neurovegetative symptoms affect these tools' accuracy, or the use of diagnostic instruments or clinical evaluation procedures for identifying psychiatric disorders in MS (Level U). Clinicians may consider a telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy program for treating depressive symptoms (Level C). Although pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic therapies are widely used to treat depressive and anxiety disorders in individuals with MS, evidence is insufficient to support/refute the use of the antidepressants and individual and group therapies reviewed herein (Level U). For pseudobulbar affect, a combination of dextromethorphan and quinidine may be considered (Level C). Evidence is insufficient to determine the psychiatric effects in individuals with MS of disease-modifying and symptomatic therapies and corticosteroids; risk factors for suicide; and treatment of psychotic disorders (Level U). Research is needed on the effectiveness in individuals with MS of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic treatments frequently used in the non-MS population.

Effect of Telephone-Administered vs Face-to-face Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on Adherence to Therapy and Depression Outcomes Among Primary Care Patients

Primary care is the most common site for the treatment of depression. Most depressed patients prefer psychotherapy over antidepressant medications, but access barriers are believed to prevent engagement in and completion of treatment. The telephone has been investigated as a treatment delivery medium to overcome access barriers, but little is known about its efficacy compared with face-to-face treatment delivery. To examine whether telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (T-CBT) reduces attrition and is not inferior to face-to-face CBT in treating depression among primary care patients. A randomized controlled trial of 325 Chicago-area primary care patients with major depressive disorder, recruited from November 2007 to December 2010. Eighteen sessions of T-CBT or face-to-face CBT. The primary outcome was attrition (completion vs noncompletion) at posttreatment (week 18). Secondary outcomes included masked interviewer-rated depression with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Ham-D) and self-reported depression with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9). Significantly fewer participants discontinued T-CBT (n = 34; 20.9%) compared with face-to-face CBT (n = 53; 32.7%; P = .02). Patients showed significant improvement in depression across both treatments (P < .001). There were no significant treatment differences at posttreatment between T-CBT and face-to-face CBT on the Ham-D (P = .22) or the PHQ-9 (P = .89). The intention-to-treat posttreatment effect size on the Ham-D was d = 0.14 (90% CI, -0.05 to 0.33), and for the PHQ-9 it was d = -0.02 (90% CI, -0.20 to 0.17). Both results were within the inferiority margin of d = 0.41, indicating that T-CBT was not inferior to face-to-face CBT. Although participants remained significantly less depressed at 6-month follow-up relative to baseline (P < .001), participants receiving face-to-face CBT were significantly less depressed than those receiving T-CBT on the Ham-D (difference, 2.91; 95% CI, 1.20-4.63; P < .001) and the PHQ-9 (difference, 2.12; 95% CI, 0.68-3.56; P = .004). Among primary care patients with depression, providing CBT over the telephone compared with face-to-face resulted in lower attrition and close to equivalent improvement in depression at posttreatment. At 6-month follow-up, patients remained less depressed relative to baseline; however, those receiving face-to-face CBT were less depressed than those receiving T-CBT. These results indicate that T-CBT improves adherence compared with face-to-face delivery, but at the cost of some increased risk of poorer maintenance of gains after treatment cessation. clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00498706.

Therapeutic alliance in telephone-administered cognitive–behavioral therapy for hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors.

A strong therapeutic alliance has been found to predict psychotherapeutic treatment success across a variety of therapeutic modalities and patient populations. However, only a few studies have examined therapeutic alliance as a predictor of psychotherapy outcome among cancer survivors, and none have examined this relation in telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT). This study evaluated the extent to which therapeutic alliance affected psychotherapy outcomes in survivors of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), a treatment for some cancers. Forty-six patients enrolled in a randomized clinical trial of T-CBT for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) completed a baseline assessment (including self-report measures of PTSD symptoms, depression, and general distress), 10 individual T-CBT sessions, and follow-up assessments at 6, 9, and 12 months post-baseline. Therapeutic alliance was assessed after the 3rd T-CBT session with the Working Alliance Inventory, which yields overall and subscale (task, bond, and goal) scores. Analyses revealed that higher total therapeutic alliance scores prospectively predicted decreased depressive symptomatology; higher task scores predicted decreased overall distress, depressive symptomatology, symptoms of re-experiencing, and avoidance; and higher bond scores predicted decreased depressive symptomatology and symptoms of re-experiencing. These results suggest that assessments of therapeutic alliance should be incorporated into routine clinical care, and therapeutic alliance should be specifically cultivated in interventions to maximize psychotherapeutic benefits involving vulnerable populations such as cancer survivors.

Therapeutic alliance in telephone-administered cognitive–behavioral therapy for hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors.

Therapeutic alliance in telephone-administered cognitive–behavioral therapy for hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors.

Telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy for veterans served by community-based outpatient clinics.

Multiple trials have found telephone-administered cognitive behavioral therapy (T-CBT) to be effective for the treatment of depression. The aim of this study was to evaluate T-CBT for the treatment of depression among veterans served by community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs) outside of major urban areas. Eighty-five veterans meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.; American Psychiatric Association, 1994) criteria for major depressive disorder were randomized to receive 16 sessions of T-CBT over 20 weeks or treatment as usual through the CBOC. Veterans were assessed at baseline, 12 weeks, 20 weeks (posttreatment), and 6-month follow-up using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Hamilton, 1960), the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (Kroenke, Spitzer, & Williams, 2001), and a standardized psychiatric interview. There were no significant Time × Treatment effects (ps > .20). Patients were compliant, with 38 (92.7%) completing at least 12 sessions, and 32 (78.0%) having no missed sessions whatsoever. Ratings of audiotaped sessions showed the therapists to be highly competent. This trial yielded negative results for an intervention that has been shown to be effective under other circumstances. We speculate that veterans served within the Veterans Affairs system are more refractory to treatment than other populations, and they may require a more rigorous intervention. clinicaltrials.gov NCT00223652.

The Effect of Telephone-Administered Cognitive–Behavioral Therapy on Quality of Life among Patients with Multiple Sclerosis

Past research has found that a variety of physical, psychological, and social factors can affect quality of life (QOL). These previous findings suggest that interventions that address these factors could potentially improve QOL. The purpose of this study was to examine whether cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can improve QOL, and if so, explore which factors might mediate this effect. This is a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial. One hundred twenty-seven participants with multiple sclerosis and depression were randomly assigned to either a telephone-administered CBT (T-CBT) or telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy (T-SEFT) intervention. Patients assigned to T-CBT showed significantly greater improvements in QOL compared with those assigned to T-SEFT. The greater improvement in QOL among T-CBT recipients was mediated by improvements in depression and positive affect. There was also inconsistent support for the superior effect of CBT on QOL being mediated by improvement in fatigue. T-CBT provided greater QOL benefits compared with T-SEFT, which controlled for non-specific treatment components. This study further suggests that T-CBT procedures specific to the management of depression and positive affect were uniquely useful in improving QOL.

Relationship between depression, fatigue, subjective cognitive impairment, and objective neuropsychological functioning in patients with multiple sclerosis.

This study explored the influence of depression and fatigue on subjective cognitive complaints and objective neuropsychological impairment in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). Data for this study were taken from a randomized controlled trial, comparing 16 weeks of telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy and telephone-administered supportive emotion focused therapy for the treatment of depression. The sample includes 127 patients with MS. The following self-report measures were collected pre- and posttreatment: Perceived Deficits Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory-II, and Modified Fatigue Impact Scale. Measures of objective cognitive functioning and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression were administered over the telephone. Our results showed that changes in depression and fatigue significantly predicted changes in subjective cognitive complaints from pre- to posttreatment, with patients perceiving fewer cognitive problems at posttreatment (beta = .36, p < .001 and beta = .61, p < .001, respectively). Changes in depression and fatigue were not significantly related to changes in objective neuropsychological performance. Improvements in depression and fatigue also predicted improved accuracy in perceiving cognitive abilities from pre- to posttreatment (OR = .77, p < .001 and OR = .90, p < .001, respectively). The results of this study suggest that improvements in depression and fatigue through treatment do not influence objective neuropsychological performance in MS patients, but do relate to changes in subjective impairment. Furthermore, these changes improve patients' abilities to accurately perceive their cognitive functioning.

Randomized Clinical Trial of Telephone-Administered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy to Reduce Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Distress Symptoms After Hematopoietic Stem-Cell Transplantation

A significant number of survivors of hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT) report enduring adverse effects of treatment, including illness-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms and general distress. We report results of a randomized clinical trial that tested the effects of a 10-session, telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on PTSD, depression, and distress symptoms. Survivors who had undergone HSCT 1 to 3 years earlier (N = 408) were assessed for study eligibility. Those who met study eligibility criteria (n = 89) completed a baseline assessment that included a clinical interview and self-report measures of PTSD symptoms (the primary outcome) and depression and general distress (the secondary outcomes). Next, they were randomly assigned to CBT or an assessment-only condition. Survivors in the CBT group completed 10 individual telephone-based CBT sessions (T-CBT) that included strategies to reduce PTSD symptoms, depression, and general distress. Follow-up assessments occurred at 6, 9, and 12 months after the baseline assessment. Linear mixed-model analyses revealed that, compared with HSCT survivors in the assessment-only condition, survivors who completed T-CBT reported fewer illness-related PTSD symptoms, including less avoidance (P < .001) and fewer intrusive thoughts (P < .05) as well as less general distress and fewer depressive symptoms (P < .05) even after controlling for potential demographic and medical covariates. These results were consistent across the three follow-up assessments. A brief, telephone-administered CBT intervention developed for HSCT survivors is an efficacious treatment for reducing illness-related PTSD symptoms and general distress.

Telephone-administered psychotherapy for depression in MS patients: moderating role of social support

Depression is common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS). While psychotherapy is an effective treatment for depression, not all individuals benefit. We examined whether baseline social support might differentially affect treatment outcome in 127 participants with MS and depression randomized to either Telephone-administered Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (T-CBT) or Telephone-administered Emotion-Focused Therapy (T-EFT). We predicted that those with low social support would improve more in T-EFT, since this approach emphasizes the therapeutic relationship, while participants with strong social networks and presumably more emotional resources might fare better in the more structured and demanding T-CBT. We found that both level of received support and satisfaction with that support at baseline did moderate treatment outcome. Individuals with high social support showed a greater reduction in depressive symptoms in the T-CBT as predicted, but participants with low social support showed a similar reduction in both treatments. This suggests that for participants with high social support, CBT may be a more beneficial treatment for depression compared with EFT.

Telephone-Administered Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Case Study of Anxiety and Depression in Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is a chronic medical illness with a high incidence of psychiatric comorbidity, specifically depression and anxiety. Research on treatment of such psychiatric complications is scarce. Non-pharmaceutical treatment options are especially attractive. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psychotherapeutic treatment option that has been successful in other chronically medically ill populations with comorbid depression and anxiety. The current research had two aims. The first was to pilot the feasibility of screening and identifying PD patients with symptoms of anxiety and depression in a specialized outpatient clinic. The second aim was to pilot the feasibility of telephone-administered CBT for the treatment of depression and anxiety in persons with PD, which was done through a case series comparing telephone-administered CBT to a Support strategy. A fairly large portion (67.5%) of patients screened in the outpatient clinic were identified as having symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. Results also indicated that CBT delivered via the telephone is a useful approach for targeting psychiatric symptoms in this population. A case example is given to illustrate the clinical considerations associated with delivering therapy via telephone to persons with PD.

Alliance in two telephone-administered treatments: Relationship with depression and health outcomes.

The present study examined the relationship between therapeutic alliance and both depression and health outcomes in a randomized clinical trial of 2 telephone-administered treatments with 97 clients with multiple sclerosis (MS). The 16-week, manualized treatments compared were telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT) and telephone-administered supportive emotion focused therapy (T-SEFT), an experiential treatment. Alliance scores were significantly higher in T-CBT compared with T-SEFT, and treatment moderated the relationship between alliance and outcome on some of the measures. Specifically, alliance predicted subsequent improvements in depression within the T-CBT condition, but not in T-SEFT, controlling for early symptom change. The authors found a similar trend for alliance and MS-related disability in T-CBT only. This is one of the first studies to examine the role of alliance in outcome for the emerging modality of telephone therapy and one of the few to relate alliance to health outcomes. The findings suggest that the therapist-client relationship is important to improvement in telephone therapy and that the role of alliance in outcome may vary by treatment approach.

Reduction in disability in a randomized controlled trial of telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy.

The authors examined the efficacy of telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT) and telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy (T-SEFT) in reducing disability among disabled patients with multiple sclerosis and depression. Telephone administration of therapy allowed care to be delivered to a more disabled population. This is a secondary analysis of a randomized controlled trial; the primary outcome results for depression are reported in D. C. Mohr, S. L. Hart, L. Julian, C. Catledge, L. Honos-Webb, L. Vella, et al. (2005). A randomized controlled trial, comparing 16 weeks of T-CBT with T-SEFT. Disability was measured using Guy's Neurological Disability Scale; fatigue was measured using the Fatigue Impact Scale; depression was measured using the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Patients in both treatments showed significant improvements in disability and fatigue. These improvements were related to reductions in depression. T-CBT produced significantly greater decreases in disability and fatigue, compared with T-SEFT, even after controlling for depression. The greater benefit of T-CBT on disability was mediated by physical fatigue. These findings support the hypothesis that significant reductions in disability can be achieved by reducing depression in patients with multiple sclerosis. There was also evidence that further reductions could be achieved through CBT-specific interventions that include a focus on symptoms such as fatigue management.

Therapy by Phone Helpful When Office Visit Difficult

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Clinical & Research NewsFull AccessTherapy by Phone Helpful When Office Visit DifficultEve BenderEve BenderSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:7 Oct 2005https://doi.org/10.1176/pn.40.19.00400024For most, the telephone is a way to reach out to friends and family. Now, researchers at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), have discovered that the phone may also be an essential tool in depression treatment for some patients.In a study of 120 patients with multiple sclerosis who had been diagnosed with depression, depression symptoms lifted in those who received either telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT) or telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy (T-SEFT).However, a greater percentage of those who received T-CBT experienced a reduction in depressive symptoms when compared with those who received T-SEFT.The results appeared in the September Archives of General Psychiatry.David Mohr, Ph.D., the study's lead investigator and an associate professor of psychiatry at UCSF, recruited 120 patients who had been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis from the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Group of Northern California and from regional chapters of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.To be included in the study, patients had to have a score of 3 or higher (of a possible score of 6) on the Guy's Neurological Disability Scale, a score of 16 or higher on the Beck Depression Inventory, and 14 or higher on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS).Researchers used these and other instruments, including the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale, to assess patients for up to a year after the initial assessment.The patients were randomized to receive T-CBT or T-SEFT from a doctoral-level psychologist once a week for 16 weeks. About the same percentage of patients in both groups were taking an antidepressant during the study.According to Mohr, T-CBT is similar to standardized, face-to-face CBT, but is administered over the phone. Therapists taught patients skills to help them manage cognitions and behaviors that can contribute to depression.The goal of T-SEFT was to increase patients' awareness of emotions such as anger that, when unacknowledged, could contribute to depression, according to proponents of the therapy.The authors said that “patients showed significant improvements in depression and positive affect during the 16 weeks of telephone-administered treatment” but that T-CBT brought about greater improvement in depression than did T-SEFT.For instance, at week 16, patients in the T-CBT group had significantly improved scores compared with those of the T-SEFT group on the HDRS (p=.02) and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (p=.008).In addition, at the week 16 assessment, just eight patients in the T-CBT group still met criteria for a diagnosis of depression, while 18 in the T-SEFT group did (p=.02).Despite recognizing that telephone-administered psychotherapy is not ideal in all circumstances, Mohr told Psychiatric News that he believes that “patients and therapists can form meaningful, therapeutic relationships over the phone” and that telephone-administered psychotherapy may be the only way to reach some patients who have no access to traditional psychotherapy provided in an office or clinic.Some patients, for example, may have problems getting to a therapist's office due to physical disabilities, as is the case with some people with multiple sclerosis. Others may face a range of treatment barriers including difficulties related to transportation, time, stigma, and child- or elder-care issues, Mohr noted.The study's very low attrition rate—5 percent as compared with 25 percent in trials of face-to-face psychotherapy, according to the report—may support the belief that telephone-administered psychotherapy reduces the barriers that keep some individuals from receiving psychotherapy in person, Mohr noted.However, the report pointed out that T-CBT may not be indicated for all patients and that “it will be important to examine if the outcomes of telephone-administered therapies are equivalent to face-to-face interventions....”Future research should also investigate whether telephone-administered psychotherapy may be helpful to people with depression who have little or no access to treatment in the wake of a disaster such as Hurricane Katrina, he said.“What has not been studied is the use of these treatments in disaster situations, where there may be a sudden need for counseling and intervention” for survivors.An abstract of “Telephone-Administered Psychotherapy for Depression” is posted at<http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/62/9/1007>.▪ Arch Gen Psychiatry 2005 62 1007 ISSUES NewArchived

Telephone-Administered Psychotherapy for Depression

Several studies have shown that telephone-administered cognitive-behavioral therapy (T-CBT) is superior to forms of no treatment controls. No study has examined if the skills-training component to T-CBT provides any benefit beyond that provided by nonspecific factors. To test the efficacy of a 16-week T-CBT against a strong control for attention and nonspecific therapy effects. Randomized controlled trial including 12-month follow-up. Telephone administration of psychotherapy with patients in their homes. Participants had depression and functional impairments due to multiple sclerosis. A 16-week T-CBT program was compared with 16 weeks of telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy. Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score, Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV diagnosis of major depressive disorder, Beck Depression Inventory score, and Positive Affect scale score of the Positive and Negative Affect Scale. Of the 127 participants randomized, 7 (5.5%) dropped out of treatment. There were significant improvement during treatment on all outcome measures (P<.01 for all) and an increase in Positive Affect Scale score. Improvements over 16 weeks of treatment were significantly greater for T-CBT, compared with telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy, for major depressive disorder frequency (P = .02), Hamilton Depression Rating Scale score (P = .02), and Positive Affect Scale score (P = .008), but not for the Beck Depression Inventory score (P = .29). Treatment gains were maintained during 12-month follow-up; however, differences across treatments were no longer evident (P > .16 for all). Patients showed significant improvements in depression and positive affect during the 16 weeks of telephone-administered treatment. The specific cognitive-behavioral components of T-CBT produced improvements above and beyond the nonspecific effects of telephone-administered supportive emotion-focused therapy on evaluator-rated measures of depression and self-reported positive affect. Attrition was low.