Improving internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy for alcohol misuse: Patient perspectives following program completion

Experiences of a therapist-guided internet-delivered intervention for hazardous and harmful drinking. A qualitative study

“…Furthermore, several participants expressed a desire for increased contact and communication with the therapist. This corresponds with results from a study on patient perspectives on internet-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy for alcohol misuse ( Hadjistavropoulos et al, 2021 ). On the other hand, some participants also said that they did not expect a great deal of contact with the therapist in the first place, and that they knew therapist support was secondary to the self-help modules.…”

“…On the other hand, some participants also said that they did not expect a great deal of contact with the therapist in the first place, and that they knew therapist support was secondary to the self-help modules. According to Hadjistavropoulos et al (2021) , the results from several studies indicate that offering consistent guidance from a therapist gave better patient outcomes in ICBT for alcohol misuse. However, they underline inconsistencies in the research literature and that some recent studies (e.g., Johansson et al, 2021 ) have found no significant differences between guided ICBT and self-help programs.…”

“…However, alcohol misuse is significantly undertreated and is generally associated with shame and guilt ( World Health Organization, 2018 ). A significant proportion of people with substance misuse do not seek treatment and therefore do not receive the necessary help at an early stage ( Hadjistavropoulos et al, 2021 ). There is a need for differentiated low-threshold health services that can help the person change drinking habits at an early stage and at the same time meet the person's desire for discretion and anonymity.…”

“…Qualitative research designs that describe patient perceptions and how they experience treatment have been proposed to improve ICBT for alcohol misuse ( Hadjistavropoulos et al, 2021 ). Ekström and Johansson (2020) conducted a qualitative study interviewing 38 users of an Internet intervention based on CBT for problematic alcohol use.…”

“…Despite having proven efficacious in several studies, ICBT for alcohol misuse has not been broadly implemented within the health services ( Hadjistavropoulos et al, 2021 ), mainly due to the variability in adherence and outcomes across studies ( Hadjistavropoulos et al, 2021 ). Furthermore, there is still limited knowledge of how participants experience internet-delivered treatment ( Fleischmann et al, 2017 ).…”