OBJECTIVE: Using evidence-based psychotherapies in community mental health clinics could significantly improve patient functioning. This study explored perceived facilitators and barriers related to implementing interpersonal and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT), an evidence-based psychotherapy for bipolar disorder. METHODS: The authors conducted 30-minute semistructured interviews with clinic administrators, supervisors, and clinicians from five community mental health clinics focusing on anticipated barriers and facilitators related to implementing IPSRT. RESULTS: Seventeen participants (four administrators, three supervisors, and ten clinicians) completed the interviews. Important barriers to effective implementation included frequent client no-shows, difficulties transitioning from training to practice, and time constraints. Facilitators included support from supervisors and other clinicians, decreased productivity requirements or compensation for time spent while learning IPSRT, and reference materials. CONCLUSIONS: Administrators and clinicians expressed similar beliefs about facilitators and barriers related to implementing IPSRT. The challenge of high no-show rates was not identified as a barrier in previous research.

OBJECTIVE: The authors conducted a feasibility assessment of online training plus an online learning collaborative to support implementation of an evidence-based psychosocial treatment in a community mental health system. METHODS: Two mental health centers were randomly allocated to in-person training with local supervision, and three were assigned to online training plus an online learning collaborative supported by expert clinicians. Participants (N=36) were clinicians interested in interpersonal and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT), an evidence-based psychotherapy for bipolar disorder. After training, 136 patients reported monthly on the extent to which clinicians used 19 IPSRT techniques. RESULTS: Clinicians from both training groups increased use of IPSRT techniques. Patients of clinicians receiving Internet-supported e-learning and of those receiving in-person training reported comparable clinician use of IPSRT techniques. CONCLUSIONS: Internet-supported e-learning by community clinicians was found to be feasible and led to uptake of an evidence-based psychotherapy comparable to that by clinicians who received face-to-face training.

OBJECTIVE: Despite widespread use of individual outpatient psychotherapies among community mental health centers (CMHCs), few studies have examined implementation of these psychotherapies. This exploratory qualitative study identified key themes associated with the implementation of an empirically supported psychotherapy in CMHCs. METHODS: The authors conducted semistructured interviews with 12 key informants from four CMHCs that had implemented interpersonal and social rhythm therapy (IPSRT). Their responses were categorized into key themes. RESULTS: Five major themes were identified: pretraining familiarity with IPSRT, administrative support for implementation, IPSRT fit with usual practice and clinic culture, implementation team and plan, and supervision and consultation. Discussion of these themes varied among participants from clinics considered successful or unsuccessful implementers. CONCLUSIONS: Participants identified both key themes and several strategies for facilitating implementation. The findings suggest that when these key factors are present, outcome-enhancing treatments can be implemented and sustained, even in clinics with limited resources.

Although schools can improve children's access to mental health services, not all school-based providers are able to successfully deliver evidence-based practices. Indeed, even when school clinicians are trained in evidence-based practices (EBP), the training does not necessarily result in the implementation of those practices. This study explores factors that influence implementation of a particular EBP, Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS). Semi-structured telephone interviews with 35 site administrators and clinicians from across the United States were conducted 6-18 months after receiving CBITS training to discuss implementation experiences. The implementation experiences of participants differed, but all reported similar barriers to implementation. Sites that successfully overcame such barriers differed from their unsuccessful counterparts by having greater organizational structure for delivering school services, a social network of other clinicians implementing CBITS, and administrative support for implementation. This study suggests that EBP implementation can be facilitated by having the necessary support from school leadership and peers.

At first glance, implementing evidence-based treatments for ethnically diverse youths may seem to raise some concerns. Do manual-based treatments work for the diverse youths whom we see in our communities? Should clinicians only use culturally specific treatments? Unfortunately, the literature is not definitive. Several studies have found that tailoring interventions for specific populations can increase their effectiveness, whereas others have found that cultural adaptations of an intervention may actually dilute the effectiveness of the original treatment even though retention is improved. What seems to be important is to strike a balance between fidelity to evidence-based treatment and culturally informed care.

There is less empirical information available to guide policymaker and clinician decisions about how best to address the mental health (MH) needs of individuals directly and indirectly affected by war. The authors present some of the research questions which should be addressed so that resources are used in a manner most likely to reduce psychiatric or psychological morbidity.

CONTEXT: No randomized controlled studies have been conducted to date on the effectiveness of psychological interventions for children with symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that has resulted from personally witnessing or being personally exposed to violence. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a collaboratively designed school-based intervention for reducing children's symptoms of PTSD and depression that has resulted from exposure to violence. DESIGN: A randomized controlled trial conducted during the 2001-2002 academic year. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Sixth-grade students at 2 large middle schools in Los Angeles who reported exposure to violence and had clinical levels of symptoms of PTSD. INTERVENTION: Students were randomly assigned to a 10-session standardized cognitive-behavioral therapy (the Cognitive-Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools) early intervention group (n = 61) or to a wait-list delayed intervention comparison group (n = 65) conducted by trained school mental health clinicians. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Students were assessed before the intervention and 3 months after the intervention on measures assessing child-reported symptoms of PTSD (Child PTSD Symptom Scale; range, 0-51 points) and depression (Child Depression Inventory; range, 0-52 points), parent-reported psychosocial dysfunction (Pediatric Symptom Checklist; range, 0-70 points), and teacher-reported classroom problems using the Teacher-Child Rating Scale (acting out, shyness/anxiousness, and learning problems; range of subscales, 6-30 points). RESULTS: Compared with the wait-list delayed intervention group (no intervention), after 3 months of intervention students who were randomly assigned to the early intervention group had significantly lower scores on symptoms of PTSD (8.9 vs 15.5, adjusted mean difference, - 7.0; 95% confidence interval [CI], - 10.8 to - 3.2), depression (9.4 vs 12.7, adjusted mean difference, - 3.4; 95% CI, - 6.5 to - 0.4), and psychosocial dysfunction (12.5 vs 16.5, adjusted mean difference, - 6.4; 95% CI, -10.4 to -2.3). Adjusted mean differences between the 2 groups at 3 months did not show significant differences for teacher-reported classroom problems in acting out (-1.0; 95% CI, -2.5 to 0.5), shyness/anxiousness (0.1; 95% CI, -1.5 to 1.7), and learning (-1.1, 95% CI, -2.9 to 0.8). At 6 months, after both groups had received the intervention, the differences between the 2 groups were not significantly different for symptoms of PTSD and depression; showed similar ratings for psychosocial function; and teachers did not report significant differences in classroom behaviors. CONCLUSION: A standardized 10-session cognitive-behavioral group intervention can significantly decrease symptoms of PTSD and depression in students who are exposed to violence and can be effectively delivered on school campuses by trained school-based mental health clinicians.