Group Therapy Intervention Proposal

779 Words2 Pages

This intervention is focused on improving the efficacy of an existing group therapy program by reducing the routinely high attrition rate of group participation of adult individuals diagnosed with chronic depression through employing an individualized peer mentoring scheme.
Aims:
 To improve long-term management of chronic depression through increased social support
 To improve treatment outcomes of individuals diagnosed with chronic depression who are prescribed group therapy
Objectives:
 To increase perceived social support of participants
 To improve adherence to treatment plan, resulting in a decrease in group therapy attrition rate
 To successfully pair participants with a peer mentor that results in a constructive relationship …show more content…

The first component is an already established standard practice of group therapy that adheres to the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines (24) in which a patient is enrolled in a community group therapy for chronic depression as a part of a treatment plan determined upon diagnosis. The group therapy includes cognitive behavioral therapy and therapeutic goal setting, run by a mental health care professional. The second, novel component of this program begins with matching a peer-mentor volunteer with each patient when they are enrolled in the community group therapy. This peer mentor will be matched as closely as possible by characteristics such as interests, gender, and …show more content…

A contrast must be made between facilitating friendships and the monitored set of positive, healthy interactions of participants that this intervention proposes. The selected peer mentors will go through a training session that will cover educational information about serious mental illness, mental illness with comorbidity, cultural and ethical considerations, tools and available resources for maintaining their own mental health while volunteering in the program, basic crisis management skills, conflict resolutions skills and guidelines outlining the expectations and boundaries of the relationships. Previous studies have flagged unrealistic expectations, from both the participant and the peer mentor as a main source of dissatisfaction (18,21). To combat this, the proposed intervention has clearly established expectations and boundaries that are presented to the participant and to the peer mentor at the training

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