Internet-based CBT gives good results for depression
By Catherine Walker
Treatment and therapy received via the internet enables more patients to get help with their depression, new research suggests.
Fredrik Hollandare has studied the effects of internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) on both ongoing depression and for preventing relapses. His findings are presented in a doctoral dissertation at the School of Health and Medical Science at Orebro University. Holandare has worked at a psychiatric outpatient unit in Hallsberg since 2002.
Hollandare says that the purpose of internet-based treatment is not to replace traditional therapy, face to face, for those who need it. But for many people it is an equally good , or even better, alternative, since they can choose their own time and place.
‘There is no single depression treatment that fits everybody. But the more treatments we have the better the chance of finding the right treatment for the next person seeking help’ Hollandare says.
The main advantage is that more people can get access to treatment that has previously involved a long waiting list. For patients who risk relapsing this is an particularly welcome improvement, as the shortage of trained CBT therapists imits the possibility of continued treatment.
Hollandare adds ‘If there are lingering symptoms following a treatment for depression, there is a great risk of relapse. But among the individuals with previous depression who participated in our internet-based relapse prevention, only 10% experienced a new period of depression, compared with 38% in the control group.’
People in internet treatment have the support of a personal therapist. This involves around two to two and a half hours of the therapist’s work time which is higher than with traditional CBT.
‘The county councils that introduced internet treatment estimate that they will be able to treat four times as many patients as when they work face to face. What’s more, society can probably save huge amounts of money if we can prevent relapses, since 10% of all sickness compensation in Sweden goes to individuals who are on leave owing to depression,’ Hollandare says.
CBT is particularly suitable for internet-based treatments as it is based on a number of principles that therapist teach their patients to use in their own everyday lives.
‘What ‘s important is not the therapist as an individual but rather the specific methods that are the core of CBT, and these can be taught in many different ways, including via the internet,’ concluded Hollandare.
