Open event on internet-based treatment

Arranged by CEBU/ Mikael Thastum

Oplysninger om arrangementet

Tidspunkt

Torsdag 6. december 2018,  kl. 09:00 - 11:15

Sted

Auditorie 011 i bygning 1324

Arrangør

CEBU/ Mikael Thastum

 

9.00-10.00:

Using technology to facilitate screening, early intervention and clinical service delivery for childhood emotional disorders

Sonja March, Associate Professor at University of Southern Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. https://staffprofile.usq.edu.au/profile/Sonja-March

Children and adolescents are highly skilled in the use of digital technologies and typically have ready access to multiple devices at any one time. Young people today are also a ‘connected’ generation; digital natives who use the internet regularly for the purposes of education, social connection, health, and relaxation. They also report feeling comfortable seeking help and mental health information online, with privacy and anonymity highly valued by this group. Thus, digital technologies offer great promise as a way of addressing mental health in young people.

But how can we ensure digital tools for youth mental health aren’t just another fad? This talk will describe some of the ways in which digital tools can be used for the assessment, prevention and treatment of emotional disorders in childhood and adolescence. It will discuss the importance of digital modality, and highlight occasions under which apps and websites can be most effective (and non-effective). Importantly, this talk will demonstrate how children are not simply ‘little adults’ – the development of eHealth tools needs to be developmentally appropriate, find unique ways of accounting for the lack of therapist contact, and should involve strong co-design elements.

This talk will show examples from three platforms, 1) the Interactive Child Distress Screener, an animated tool for identification of emotional and behavioural difficulties, 2) Coping Coach, a gaming-based prevention program for childhood medical trauma and injury, and 3) BRAVE-ONLINE, a suite of internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (ICBT) programs for youth anxiety. Finally, this talk will include a discussion of the challenges and opportunities in using ICBT platforms in clinical service delivery, drawing from the results of a recent large scale open trial in a community context.

 

10.15 – 11.15

Internet-based interventions and virtual reality in practice

Per Carlbring, Professor at Department of Psychology, Stockholms University, Sweden

https://www.su.se/english/profiles/pecar-1.192167

Internet-delivered cognitive behavior therapy (ICBT) has a relatively short history, with the first trials being conducted in the late 1990s. Since then well above 150 randomized controlled trials suggest that ICBT can be effective. While the field still suffers from a scattered terminology a dramatic number of programs and studies now exist. Effect sizes for ICBT have been well within the range of face-to-face CBT with the exception of unguided programs (e.g., not even minimal therapist contact), which usually, but not always, result in smaller effects.

So, the evidence is there but how is it done? In this talk a pioneer in the field will present some recent research findings, but also share his experience of how to become a true expert internet therapist. It is clear that therapist guidance generally is important for good outcome – but how much, how often and when should you do it? And most importantly, what should you write in your feedback? Based on his own research from analyzing the written content of email messages, sent from both the client and the therapist, clear suggestions will be shared.

Screenshots and demonstration of treatment systems including the Swedish web platform as well as a gamified virtual reality exposure therapy intervention. Furthermore, a recently tested smartphone application will also be briefly presented.

Finally, you will learn about the risk of negative effects of Internet-based cognitive behavior therapy and how to measure the occurrence of symptom deterioration, adverse and unwanted events, and their relationship with long term treatment outcome.

Everyone is welcome and no registration is required.