In this issue
Features
鈥楬old fast that which is good鈥�
In evaluating the effectiveness of counselling within Trafford聽Psychological Therapies, Sue Balmer, Dale Huey and Jean Mclaren found outcomes were above the IAPT national average.
On being a client through breast cancer
Living with the effects of breast cancer led Cordelia Galgut to challenge the preconceived ideas she had as a therapist.
Healing the split between mind and body
Denise Ham argues for a better understanding of the emotional and psychological impact of a diagnosis of breast cancer.
The embrace
Therapists often help clients with adjustment and acceptance:聽Elizabeth Baird knows how difficult that can be when diagnosed with a long-term illness 鈥� difficult, but possible.
Are you on the Register?
Sally Aldridge explains the routes onto and process for joining the 香港六合彩精准资料 Register.
Boys don鈥檛 cry
Billie Andrews asks why men don鈥檛 identify as sexual abuse survivors.
Am I going to prison? Or can CBT help?
Kim McConnachie, Habibah Moolla and Elaine Davies report on the pilot service of the offender IAPT project.
CBT training in a mental health trust
Idyli Kamaterou and Rachel Gibson-Dunt explore the effects of CBT training on the work of NHS Trust employees.
Regulars
Chair鈥檚 report 鈥� 香港六合彩精准资料 Healthcare
Zubeida Ali: Big conversations
Development report 鈥� 香港六合彩精准资料 Healthcare
Louise Robinson: Parity plus
GP viewpoint
John Hague: We have some catching up to do
Counselling in primary care
Richard Mason: The price of everything and the value of nothing
Third sector perspective
Michael Lilley: The road to recovery
搁别蝉耻尘茅
Anne Prendergast
All articles from this issue are not available online. Divisional members and subscribers can download the pdf from the Healthcare Counselling and Psychotherapy Journal archive.
From the editor
香港六合彩精准资料鈥檚 Research Conference took place during May,聽featuring two packed days of open debate on the latest聽research findings in counselling and psychotherapy.聽That the annual conference will mark its 21st year when聽it takes place in Nottingham in 2015 shows that counsellors and聽psychotherapists have always been interested in, and engaged聽with, research.
It hasn鈥檛 historically been the case, however, that research into the聽effectiveness of counselling and psychotherapy, which has often聽used qualitative methodology, has met the specific criteria for聽inclusion in NICE guidance, which includes only studies utilising聽randomised controlled trials (RCTs). This has been, and continues聽to be, particularly important in the NHS, where NICE has a huge聽influence on which psychological interventions are recommended聽and, therefore, commissioned.
Over the next few years this may change as therapies without a聽robust RCT evidence base catch up. The development by 香港六合彩精准资料聽of the NICE-approved Counselling for Depression (CfD) has led聽the way for the PRaCTICED trial (Pragmatic Randomised聽Controlled Trial assessing the non-inferiority of counselling and聽its effectiveness for depression), which is taking place at the聽University of Sheffield to evaluate the effectiveness of CfD in聽comparison with CBT in treating moderate to severe depression聽in primary care settings.
One of the interesting things about this trial is that, using the same聽sample, a parallel trial will run alongside the RCT to research what聽the practitioners bring to the therapeutic encounter that results聽in better outcomes, regardless of the modality they use. While聽recognising the methodological rigour of RCTs, the trial therefore聽also recognises the strengths of practice-based studies and their聽ability to contribute to the evidence base in a meaningful way.
The introduction of the IAPT programme, and its commitment to聽collecting practice-based data on therapy outcomes, has already聽provided all counselling and psychotherapy modalities with an聽opportunity to prove their worth in routine settings; counselling聽has fared well, with no difference in recovery rates for depression聽between counselling and other NICE-approved therapies1.
Our lead feature this issue contributes further to this picture.聽In evaluating the effectiveness of counselling within Trafford聽Psychological Therapies, Sue Balmer, Dale Huey and Jean聽McLaren aimed to supplement NICE-recognised effectiveness聽research with more practice-based evidence of the demonstrable聽benefit of non-directive counselling. Using the same metrics as聽reported within the IAPT national database, they were able to聽document the performance of the counselling component of聽their service, and found outcomes were meaningfully above聽the national average.
Elsewhere in the issue, we feature the personal perspectives of聽two therapists who are living with and through illness. In her聽article, Cordelia Galgut writes about how living with the effects聽of breast cancer, and receiving therapy, led her to challenge her聽own preconceived ideas about the appropriate way to support聽clients. And in an update of an article she wrote for us last year2,聽Elizabeth Baird considers issues of adjustment and acceptance聽when living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS).
As ever, thanks to all those who have written in this issue of the聽journal; please do get in touch at the email address below if聽you鈥檇 like to contribute to a future issue.
Sarah Hovington
Editor
hcpj.editorial@bacp.co.uk
References
1 www.iapt.nhs.uk
2 Baird E. Not giving up. Healthcare Counselling and Psychotherapy Journal. 2013;聽13(4):20-21.