Stimulating existential communication - first steps towards enhancing health professionals' reflective skills through blended learning.

Introduction: Talking about existential issues with patients is often experienced as challenging for healthcare professionals. This paper describes our first steps towards developing existential communication training with particular attention to reflective learning methods. Blended learning was chosen to support reflection and an easier transition to classroom conversations, and through Participatory Action Research (PAR), patients were involved in developing the curriculum.

Evaluation of a standardized posttraumatic stress disorder treatment framework in routine mental health care: Effectiveness and predictors of treatment outcome in a consecutive sample.

The primary aim of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of standardized care package (CP) treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in a Danish sample of adult psychiatric outpatients (N = 948). Secondary aims were to identify baseline predictors of treatment outcomes and investigate between-group differences in outcomes with regard to sex and treatment modality (i.e.

Patients' Experiences of Using a Self-help App for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Qualitative Study.

Background: Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common disorder that requires more treatment options. Mobile health (mHealth) app interventions are promising for patients with PTSD, as they can provide easily accessible support, strategies, and information. However, knowledge about mHealth interventions is sparse and primarily based on quantitative studies.

Improving the precision of depression diagnosis in general practice: a cluster-randomized trial.

Background: Methods to enhance the accuracy of the depression diagnosis continues to be of relevance to clinicians. The primary aim of this study was to compare the diagnostic precision of two different diagnostic strategies using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) as a reference standard. A secondary aim was to evaluate accordance between depression severity found via MINI and mean Major Depression Inventory (MDI) sum-scores presented at referral.

Collaborative care for depression and anxiety disorders: results and lessons learned from the Danish cluster-randomized Collabri trials.

Background: Meta-analyses suggest that collaborative care (CC) improves symptoms of depression and anxiety. In CC, a care manager collaborates with a general practitioner (GP) to provide evidence-based care. Most CC research is from the US, focusing on depression.

The PTSD help app in a Danish PTSD population: research protocol of a randomized controlled feasibility trial.

Background: Due to an increase in PTSD patients seeking help in the Danish mental health sector and the addition of Complex PTSD to the ICD-11, there is a need to increase efficiency of existing treatments for PTSD. mHealth interventions have been shown to reduce PTSD symptoms. Therefore, the implementation of a mHealth intervention designed for psychiatric PTSD patients as a therapy add-on may improve treatment outcome.

Social anxiety disorder and avoidant personality disorder from an interpersonal perspective.

Objectives: The general objective of this article is to study the unclear and overlapping relationship between social anxiety disorder (SAD) and avoidant personality disorder (AvPD) from an interpersonal perspective. The first specific objective is to compare the disorders with regard to interpersonal problems and general symptom distress. The second specific objective is to examine interpersonal subgroups and pathoplasticity.

(Dis-)solving the Weight Problem in Binge-Eating Disorder: Systemic Insights From Three Treatment Contexts With Weight Stability, Weight Loss, and Weight Acceptance.

Binge-eating disorder (BED) is a severe eating disorder strongly associated with obesity. Treatments struggle to provide safe and effective ways of addressing weight in a BED context. This study explored a two-phased treatment for BED developed at a major out-patient eating disorder service in Denmark.

Patient reported outcome measures (PROMs): examination of the psychometric properties of two measures for burden of symptoms and quality of life in patients with depression or anxiety.

Introduction: Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for anxiety and depressive disorders are an important aspect of measurement-based care.

Aim: The aim of the study was to perform a clinimetric analysis of two PROMs scales in patents with depression and anxiety.

Methods: Patients completed a 10-item version (SCL-10) of the Symptom Checklist to measure burden of symptoms and a brief 5-item version of World Health Organization Well-being scale (WHO-5) to measure quality of life.

The association between interpersonal problems and treatment outcome in patients with eating disorders.

Background: Interpersonal problems are thought to play an essential role in the development and maintenance of eating disorders. The aim of the current study was to investigate whether a specific interpersonal profile could be identified in a group of patients diagnosed with Bulimia Nervosa, Binge Eating Disorder, or Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified, and to explore if specific types of interpersonal problems were systematically related to treatment outcome in this group of patients.

Methods: The participants were 159 patients who received systemic/narrative outpatient group psychotherapy.

How participatory action research changed our view of the challenges of shared decision-making training.

Objective: This paper aims to demonstrate how the use of participatory action research (PAR) helped us identify ways to respond to communication challenges associated with shared decision-making (SDM) training.

Methods: Patients, relatives, researchers, and health professionals were involved in a PAR process that included: (1) two theatre workshops, (2) a pilot study of an SDM training module involving questionnaires and evaluation meetings, and (3) three reflection workshops.

Results: The PAR process revealed that health professionals often struggled with addressing existential issues such as concerns about life, relationships, meaning, and ability to lead responsive dialogue.

Collaborative care for panic disorder, generalised anxiety disorder and social phobia in general practice: study protocol for three cluster-randomised, superiority trials.

Background: People with anxiety disorders represent a significant part of a general practitioner's patient population. However, there are organisational obstacles for optimal treatment, such as a lack of coordination of illness management and limited access to evidence-based treatment such as cognitive behavioral therapy. A limited number of studies suggest that collaborative care has a positive effect on symptoms for people with anxiety disorders.

Collaborative care for depression in general practice: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial.

Background: Depression is a common illness with great human costs and a significant burden on the public economy. Previous studies have indicated that collaborative care (CC) has a positive effect on symptoms when provided to people with depression, but CC has not yet been applied in a Danish context. We therefore developed a model for CC (the Collabri model) to treat people with depression in general practice in Denmark.

Personality disorders: patient characteristics and level of outpatient treatment service.

Background: In this naturalistic study, patients with personality disorders (N = 388) treated at Stolpegaard Psychotherapy Center, Mental Health Services, Capital Region of Denmark were allocated to two different kinds of treatment: a standardized treatment package with a preset number of treatment hours (basic hospital service) and 2: a specialized treatment program for the most severely affected patients without a predetermined restricted number of treatment hours and significantly more individual psychotherapy (regional specialized hospital services).

Aims: To investigate patient characteristics associated with clinicians' allocation of patients to the two different personality disorder services.

Methods: Patient characteristics across eight domains were collected in order to study whether there were systematic differences between patients allocated to the two different treatments.

Mandatory communication training of all employees with patient contact.

Unlabelled: In 2010 a communication program that included mandatory communication skills training for all employees with patient contact was developed and launched at a large regional hospital in Denmark.

Objective: We describe the communication program, the implementation process, and the initial assessment of the process to date.

Method: The cornerstone of the program is a communication course based on the Calgary Cambridge Guide and on the experiences of several efficacy and effectiveness studies conducted at the same hospital.

[Short-term treatment of depression. Implementation of group-based cognitive behavioral therapy].

Introduction: Psychotherapy of depressive conditions is more and more in demand by patients. The effect of individual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on depression is well-documented, and foreign studies indicate that group CBT also works well. There was no Danish manual on group CBT for the purpose of clinical implementation.