by Michael D. Anestis, M.S.
Just yesterday, I noticed a flurry of folks posting a link to an NPR piece discussing the need to shop carefully when seeking psychotherapy so as to avoid ineffective (or worse) care. My initial response was excitement, although this was admittedly tempered a bit when I saw references to treatments with suboptimal research support instead of clear references to the most well-supported options. That being said, I appreciate baby steps, and the NPR article definitely represents a bit of progress on this front.
That being said, I thought my best contribution to the Mental Health Month Blog Party 2011 would be a quick post helping folks in need of mental health services figure out which treatments actually have research support. After all, it's one thing to say that people should seek out treatments supported by evidence, but without a guide for doing so, that task is remarkably difficult (click here to see what I mean by "evidence").
The easiest way for somebody looking to receive evidence-based mental health care to figure out which treatments would work best for them is to go to APA Division 12's website, which explains different diagnoses and treatments, as well as the degree of research supporting them. I have talked about this site on PBB before, but I think it would be worthwhile to revisit the topic.
Step 1: Go to the website
http://www.div12.org/PsychologicalTreatments/index.html
Step 2: Start browsing
Now, it's important to remember not to try to diagnose yourself. Valid and reliable diagnoses are best reached through the use of structured diagnostic interviews by clinicians trained in such procedures. That being said, if you have been diagnosed in the past or are curious what treatments are available for particular diagnoses, click on the "disorders" tab. This will take you to a list of mental illnesses. If you click on one diagnosis, you will see a description of its symptoms as well as a list of various treatments and the amount of research supporting each one. You can also click on each of those treatments to learn more about them.
If you are more interested in simply learning about specific treatments rather than diagnoses, click on the "treatments" tab. Here, you will be able to read a description of each treatment and, again, learn about the research supporting its use for specific populations. If a treatment is not listed here, it has no empirical evidence supporting its use in the treatment of mental illness and should be avoided.
Step 3: Find a therapist that utilizes evidence-based treatments
This can be tricky, but there are a few methods that can make this easier. Dr.Jill Holm-Denoma explained a number of these methods very well in a PBB guest post last year (click here to read). The bottom line is, it is your right to receive the best possible care for mental illnesses, but at times this will require that you ask whether your therapist uses these methods and whether he or she was actually trained to use them. A few other points to consider here that have been covered in earlier PBB articles:
- A more experienced therapist is not necessarily a better therapist.
- How intensely a therapist was trained makes a difference.
- Although getting along with your therapist and having a strong "alliance" is a good thing, the alliance is NOT more important than the type of treatment you receive.
- The quality of supervision received by the therapist while he or she was trained makes a significant difference.
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Finding evidence-based mental health care can be very difficult. First of all, because we do such a poor job of marketing these treatments, many people do not even know that they exist and believe all forms of psychotherapy are the same. Secondly, there are many people out there - some of whom appear on TV or write blogs on popular psychology websites - who try to convince people that science is not important in considering psychotherapy and/or particular treatments with no evidence are actually supported by science. My hope is that, as time goes by, more people who are trained in both clinical work and research will promote the use of science as a guide in mental health care. In the meantime, if you are in need of help, I hope that this article is a positive step in connecting you with the services most likely to get you where you want to go.
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If you would like to learn about this or other topics discussed on PBB, we recommend that you visit our online store for scientifically-based psychological resources.
Mike Anestis is a psychology resident at the University of Mississippi Medical Center and a doctoral candidate in the clinical psychology department at Florida State University.
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