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

Scharff, Frederik Bernt; Lau, Marianne Engelbrecht; Riisager, Lisa H G; Møller, Stine Bjerrum; Salimi, Mehrak Lykkeberg; Gondan, Matthias; Folke, Sofie

doi:10.1186/s40814-020-00633-x

Cited by 3 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…The study was conducted within the context of the study “The PTSD help app in a Danish PTSD population: A randomized controlled feasibility trial,” which investigated the feasibility of implementing the PTSD Help app in the Danish MHS [ 13 ]. The participants in the larger study were randomized to either a waiting list control group or a PTSD Help app treatment group.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The participants in the larger study were randomized to either a waiting list control group or a PTSD Help app treatment group. All participants received treatment for their PTSD diagnosis after 6 weeks [ 13 ]. The randomized controlled feasibility trial of the PTSD Help app study will be published in the near future.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Participants included in the study were aged ≥18 years, diagnosed with PTSD in accordance with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5), were accepted for PTSD treatment, had access to a smartphone with iOS (version 10 or higher) or Android (version 5.0.1. or higher), and provided informed consent. The reasons for exclusion were increased suicidal risk, current episodes of bipolar disorder or psychotic disorder, current substance abuse, inability to understand and/or read Danish, and concurrent psychiatric or psychological treatment of PTSD outside the MHS-CRD [ 13 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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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. Objective The aim of this study is to qualitatively explore the experiences of patients with PTSD with regard to using an mHealth app as a stand-alone intervention before commencing psychotherapeutic treatment. Methods We conducted semistructured interviews with 14 participants 6 weeks after they received the app. The participants were all referred to PTSD treatment and were waiting to commence psychotherapeutic treatment. During this waiting time, the participants had no contact with the health staff. Interviews were transcribed and were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results A total of 3 themes were identified—the use of app, being a patient, and the overall evaluation of the app. The use of the app was described with the subtheme of habits, and the theme of being a patient included the subthemes of having negative experiences with the app and being a part of a research project. The use of the app encompassed how psychological factors and technical problems could interfere with the use of the app. The theme of being a patient depicted that the waiting time before starting treatment was long, and a subgroup of patients experienced feeling worse during this time, which they partly attributed to using the app. Several suggestions for change have been described in the overall evaluation of the app. Conclusions The findings in this study revealed that emotional arousal influenced the use of the app and that it was difficult for participants to establish a habit of using the app, thus reflecting the importance of supporting habit formation when implementing an mHealth app in mental health care services. This study makes an important contribution to the field of mHealth research, as it revealed that some participants had negative experiences resulting from using the app, thus reflecting the potential harm of having an mHealth app without the support of a clinician. It is therefore recommended to use a blended care treatment or an approach in which mental health care professionals prescribe an mHealth app for relevant patients to avoid increased suicidal risk.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

et al. 2021

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“…The study was a proof-of-concept case study with two participants, lasting a period of approximately 2 weeks. The participants were recruited from a larger data collection in a study testing a mobile application for PTSD (Scharff et al, 2020). As a part of that project, the participants had been diagnosed with PTSD by two independent researchers, both clinical psychologists.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, self-report accounts of intrusions were assessed using the PTSD Check List for DSM-V (PCL-5) and the International Trauma Questionnaire (ITQ) along with other self-report measures not reported in this study. For a full description, see Scharff et al (2020). Inclusion criteria were:…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distinguishing between rumination and intrusive memories in PTSD using a wearable self-tracking instrument: a proof-of-concept case study

Arendt¹,

Riisager

Larsen

et al. 2021

tCBT

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Rumination has been shown to play a part in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but its relation to the intrusions characteristic of PTSD has mainly been investigated experimentally. This proof-of-concept case study explored the occurrence, personal experiences, and possible relation between rumination and intrusions in two PTSD patients in their daily living using a mixed method approach. A novel wearable self-tracking instrument was employed which provided fine-grained temporal resolution of observation data and could eliminate recall bias. Furthermore, quantitative and qualitative data were collected on participants’ symptoms, rumination and experiences of using the self-tracking instrument. First, without distinguishing between the two phenomena, the participants tracked both for a week. After receiving psychoeducational training for distinguishing between rumination and intrusions, the differentiated phenomena were tracked for a week. Both participants reported being subjectively able to distinguish between rumination and intrusions and made observations with high adherence during the project. Data hinted at a possible temporal relation between the phenomena in line with theories posing rumination as a maladaptive coping strategy as well as an exacerbator of PTSD symptoms. However, relations to mood were inconclusive. Furthermore, by using the self-tracking instrument, participants gained a heightened awareness of the characteristics of rumination and intrusions and contextual cues for occurrence, as well as a greater sense of momentary agency. Results reveal promising prospects in using the wearable self-tracking instrument for further investigation of the relation between rumination and intrusions in the lived lives of PTSD patients, as well as potential for incorporating this method in clinical treatment. Key learning aims (1) Self-tracking with the One Button Tracker is a novel symptom registration method, particularly suited for use in psychotherapeutic treatment and research. (2) Rumination and intrusions appear to the participants as distinct cognitive phenomena and treatment targets in PTSD. (3) Registering rumination and intrusions in real-time could reveal important temporal relations between them and the contexts in which they occur. (4) The data obtained with this self-tracking method can potentially be used as a tool in, and for the further development of psychotherapy for PTSD.

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Patients’ Experiences of Using a Self-help App for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Qualitative Study (Preprint)

Riisager¹,

Christensen²,

Scharff³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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BACKGROUND Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a common disorder for which more treatment options are needed. Mental health app (mHealth) interventions are promising to patients suffering from PTSD, however, knowledge about mHealth interventions is sparse and primarily based on quantitative studies. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to qualitatively explore PTSD patients’ experiences with using a mHealth app as a stand-alone intervention before commencing psychotherapeutic treatment. METHODS Semi-structured interviews were conducted with fourteen partients, who were interviewed six weeks after receiving the app. An inductive analysis style was used and interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis. RESULTS Three overall themes were identified: Use of app, Being a patient and Overall evaluation of the app. Use of the app was described with the subtheme of habits and and the theme of being a patient included the subthemes of negative experiences with the app and being a part of a research project. Use of the app encompassed how psychological factors and technical problems could interfere with the use of the app. Being a patient depicted that the waiting time before starting treatment felt long, and a subgroup of patients experienced feeling worse during this time, which they partly attributed to using the app. Several suggestions of change were described in the overall evaluation of the app. CONCLUSIONS The findings in this study revealed that emotional arousal influenced the use of the app and that it was difficult for patiens to establish a habit of using the app thus reflecting the importance of supporting habit formation when implementing an mHealth app into mental health care services. Some patients shared having negative experiences from using the app reflecting the potential harm from having an mHealth app without the support from a clinician. It is therefore recommended to use a blended-care treatment or an approach where mental health care professionals “prescribe” a mHealth app for relevant patients to avoid increased suicidal risk.

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

Cited by 3 publications

References 49 publications

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

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

Distinguishing between rumination and intrusive memories in PTSD using a wearable self-tracking instrument: a proof-of-concept case study

Patients’ Experiences of Using a Self-help App for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Qualitative Study (Preprint)

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