Characteristics of mental health interventions in a cohort of Italian PLWH over the last five years: impact of HIV disease and outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic.

Evidence accumulated during past years confirm that people living with HIV (PLWH) still have to deal with comorbidities and chronic complications that can increase physical and psychological issues and can affect daily functioning, quality of life and mental health. Moreover, during the COVID-19 pandemic PLWH proved to be a population at increased risk of psychological distress. We explored the ongoing issues and the characteristics of the mental health interventions for which a cohort of Italian PLWH interacted with a psychologist over the past five years. We analysed a dataset that included 61 PLWH who underwent a psychological intervention between 2018 and 2022. We compared different frequencies in characteristics of mental health interventions according to different demographic and clinical variables, psychopathological symptoms and time of the request for intervention. We showed that psychopathological symptoms most frequently reported by patients were anxiety (55.7%), and depression (49.2%). Furthermore, we reported that most our patients undertook occasional psychological support meetings (31%), sought an intervention after the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic (62.3%) and complained about disclosure issues (48.5%). Disclosure issues were mainly reported by younger PLWH (p = 0.002) with a shorter disease (p = 0.031) and treatment history (p = 0.032), and higher interpersonal sensitivity (p = 0.042). It seems fundamental to integrate psychological interventions into the care of PLWH, to give particular attention to PLWH with risky demographic, clinical and mental health factors and to pay special attention to emergency conditions (such as the COVID-19 pandemic) and the most widespread issues to create ad hoc interventions.

The Effect of Psychological Interventions on the Anxiety and Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: Maternal anxiety has been accompanied by many unfavorable effects on breastfeeding in the postpartum period. We aimed to provide scientific evidence in identifying effective interventions for anxiety and breastfeeding self-efficacy (BSE) in a systematic review and meta-analysis. Methods: All published studies with inclusion criteria by 2022 were searched in Embase, Cochrane library, Web of Sciences, Google Scholar, PubMed, Scopus, SID and Magiran. The literature search was performed using PRISMA instructions. Further, 20 eligible interventional studies (RCT and pre-posttest) and one case study were included in this systematic review and meta-analysis. Publication bias was checked with Eggers test and funnel plot methods. The collected data were analyzed using stata version16. Results: It is not possible to provide an explicit and accurate conclusion about the effective intervention method in reducing anxiety and increasing BSE among lactating women during the covid19 pandemic. The results indicated a significant increase in BSE among lactating women after educational and psychological interventions (4.20, 95% CI: 3.61 to 4.80, I2 = 26.38%). Conclusion: It is recommended to conduct further studies with a strong methodology and based on intervention methods during the postpartum period, especially in the first month of birth to reduce the symptoms of stress and anxiety in the mother, establish better mother-child attachment, and improve BSE and maternal performance during the Covid-19 pandemic. © 2023 Nourizadeh et al.

Psychological crisis intervention for students during COVID‐19 lockdown in China

Objectives Methods Results Conclusions This study aims to describe the experience and practice of an intervention process for mental health crisis with 14,093 students living in a suddenly quarantined campus during the COVID‐19 pandemic.An expert committee of psychiatrists, psychologists and student counsellors was formed to manage the psychological crisis experienced by students. The committee provided online and onsite support, disclosed timely information, attended various online courses and facilitated various activities. Using the PHQ‐9, GAD‐7 and ISI scales, psychological weekly reports, student files and emergencies, students who were likely to have a crisis event were screened, and their degree of crisis was evaluated. A "one person–one case–one team” intervention was conducted for high‐risk students.Of the 14,093 students, 11,121 finished all three online questionnaires. Based on the results of the screening tests, 732 students were placed in the prioritised attention group, 293 in the crisis group and 33 (10 [3.41%] male and 23 [7.85%] female) showed severe suicidal intentions. In total, 186 (3.26%) students declared poor sleep quality, while 610 (10.05%) students were found to have depression. The number of students affected with generalised anxiety was 650 (10.77%). Clinical intervention was successful with no untoward incidents.With strong support from the government, and the cooperation between multidisciplinary experts and the comprehensive intervention programme, the study obtained positive results. However, the limitations include the partial online survey responses and incomplete records of intervention. Nevertheless, the findings of this study could provide a foundation for further research. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Counselling & Psychotherapy Research is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

COVID-19 pandemic in the intensive care unit: Psychological implications and interventions, a systematic review.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic produced changes in intensive care units (ICUs) in patient care and health organizations. The pandemic event increased patients' risk of developing psychological symptoms during and after hospitalisation. These consequences also affected those family members who could not access the hospital. In addition, the initial lack of knowledge about the virus and its management, the climate of fear and uncertainty, the increased workload and the risk of becoming infected and being contagious, had a strong impact on healthcare staff and organizations. This highlighted the importance of interventions aimed at providing psychological support to ICUs, involving patients, their relatives, and the staff; this might involve the reorganisation of the daily routine and rearrangement of ICU staff duties. AIM: To conduct a systematic review of psychological issues in ICUs during the COVID-19 pandemic involving patients, their relatives, and ICU staff. METHODS: We investigated the PubMed and the ClinicalTrials.gov databases and found 65 eligible articles, upon which we commented. RESULTS: Our results point to increased perceived stress and psychological distress in staff, patients and their relatives and increased worry for being infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 in patients and relatives. Furthermore, promising results were obtained for some psychological programmes aiming at improving psychological measures in all ICU categories. CONCLUSION: As the pandemic limited direct inter-individual interactions, the role of interventions using digital tools and virtual reality is becoming increasingly important. All considered, our results indicate an essential role for psychologists in ICUs.

Digital Addiction Intervention for Children and Adolescents: A Scoping Review.

Digital devices play a significant role in the learning and living of children and adolescents, whose overuse or addiction has become a global concern. This scoping review seeks to synthesize existing studies to investigate relevant interventions and their effects on digital addiction in children (ages 0-18). To understand the latest advances, we have identified 17 studies published in international peer-reviewed journals between 2018-2022. The findings revealed that, first, most interventions for digital addiction in children and adolescents were cognitive-behavioral therapies (CBT) or CBT-based interventions, which could improve anxiety, depression, and related symptoms of digital addiction. Second, rather than directly targeting addictive behaviors, some family-based interventions aim to strengthen family functions and relationships. Finally, digital-based interventions, such as website-based, application-based, and virtual reality interventions, are promising in adolescent digital addiction interventions. However, these studies shared the same limitations: small sample sizes, short intervention durations, no control group, and nonrandomized assignments. The small sample size problem is difficult to solve by offline intervention. Meanwhile, online digital-based intervention is still in its infancy, resulting in limited generalizability of the findings and the inability to popularize digital intervention. Accordingly, future intervention studies should integrate various assessments and interventions to form an integrated platform to provide interventions for addicted children and adolescents worldwide.

Therapists' perceptions and acceptability of providing internet-delivered guided self-help acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for family carers of people with dementia (iACT4CARERS): a qualitative study

This study aimed to explore therapists' perceptions and acceptability of providing internet-delivered, therapist-guided, self-help acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) for family carers of people with dementia (iACT4CARERS). To achieve this, a qualitative approach with semi-structured interviews was employed with eight novice therapists recruited from primary and secondary care services taking part in a feasibility study of iACT4CARERS. The interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analysed using thematic analysis. Four over-arching themes were identified: (1) positive attitudes towards the intervention, (2) therapists' workload, (3) therapists' confidence to perform their role, and (4) connecting with family carers in a virtual context. Theme 1 included seeing their involvement as an opportunity for personal growth and perceiving benefits to the family carers, which contributed to greater acceptability. Theme 2 reflected that while workload and the user-friendliness of the online platform were highly acceptable among the therapists, there were also time-consuming cases that increased therapists' burden. Theme 3 revealed that practical resources provided during the training, continued supervision, and opportunities to learn from other therapists, increased therapist confidence and facilitated greater acceptability. Finally, Theme 4 highlighted that improving the connection between therapists and carers was critical in a virtual context and strategies to improve the therapist–carer relationship were recommended. The implementation of iACT4CARERS was largely acceptable for the therapists involved in the trial. Ways to strengthen the therapeutic relationship in the virtual context and practical strategies to deal with common problems may enhance therapist experience and delivery in a full-scale effectiveness trial.Key learning aims(1) To understand which factors facilitated therapists' positive perceptions and acceptability of providing internet-delivered guided self-help ACT (iACT4CARERS).(2) To understand what challenges acted as barriers to therapists' positive perceptions and acceptability of providing iACT4CARERS.(3) To learn what aspects of the training and the intervention can be refined to improve the acceptability to therapists in trials involving internet-delivered guided self-help interventions for family carers.

Transferability of psychological interventions from disaster-exposed employees to healthcare workers working during the COVID-19 pandemic—update to a systematic review and secondary analysis

Background: The COVID-19 Pandemic had a significant negative impact on the mental health of healthcare workers (HCWs). Evidence-based interventions that could be used to mitigate this impact are lacking in the literature. This review aims to evaluate psychological interventions used for employees following previous disasters and assess the transferability of these interventions to a healthcare setting during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Intervention information from a previously published systematic review of the literature published up to 2015 was extracted, and an additional search of studies published from 2015–2020 was conducted. Studies were assessed for transferability using a checklist derived from the PIET-T process model. Results: Interventions from eighteen studies were assessed for transferability (including three studies identified in an updated literature search). Interventions established as most transferable included resilience training, meditation/mindfulness interventions, and cognitive behavioural therapy. Psychological debriefing was transferable but as it is contrary to current recommendations is not deemed appropriate for adoption. Conclusions: Several existing interventions have the potential to be utilised within the COVID-19 context/ pandemic. More research needs to be undertaken in this area to assess these interventions upon transfer. © Journal of Public Health and Emergency. All rights reserved.

How to be a hospital psychologist in the covid-19 pandemic in Brasil? A documental research / Como ser psicólogo hospitalar na pandemia de covid-19 no Brasil? Uma pesquisa documental

Resumo Com alta transmissibilidade e demanda por atendimento hospitalar, a covid-19 teve impactos (como ansiedade, medo e insegurança) sobre o equilíbrio psicológico de pacientes, seus familiares e profissionais da saúde. Diante disso, o objetivo deste artigo é mapear intervenções psicológicas no contexto hospitalar frente à covid-19, a fim de subsidiar a constituição de protocolos. Observou-se que visitas virtuais, trabalho de luto antecipatório e técnicas de psicoeducação, através de psicoterapia breve, mostram-se necessários dentro do contexto de unidades fechadas, Unidades de Terapia Intensiva (UTIs) e emergências, como forma de enfrentamento que permite a elaboração de sentimentos, como medo, angústia e ansiedade. Para ambulatórios, destacam-se os plantões psicológicos, através de videochamadas, de demanda espontânea, além de encaminhamento para psicoterapia externa, voltados a profissionais com sintomas de pânico, ansiedade, depressão e exaustão. Mesmo com intervenções psicológicas originadas a partir desse contexto, evidencia-se a falta de protocolos com abrangência nacional e eficazes para o ambiente hospitalar, tanto para pacientes e familiares como para profissionais que atuam diretamente com o vírus. Portanto, cabe ao Brasil aperfeiçoar o modelo apresentado pela Comissão Nacional de Saúde da China, ou construir protocolos próprios de acordo com o contexto sociocultural, compreendendo suas diferentes formas de comunicação e enfrentamento. É essencial considerar sentimentos de cansaço dos profissionais da saúde, de forma que se sugerem ações como grupo de acolhimento de demandas emocionais geradas nesta pandemia.

Abstract With high transmission and demand for hospital care, COVID-19 caused impacts (such as anxiety fear, and insecurity) on the psychological balance of patients, family members, and health professionals. Therefore, the objective of this article is to map psychological interventions in the hospital context against COVID-19, to support the constitution of protocols in this environment. We observed that virtual visits, anticipatory mourning work, and psychoeducational techniques, via brief psychotherapy are necessary within the context of closed units, Intensive Care Units (ICU's), and emergencies, as a way of coping that allow the elaboration of feelings such as fear, anguish , and anxiety. For outpatient clinics, psychological shifts in hospitals, via video calls, of spontaneous demand, in addition to referral to external psychotherapy, for professionals with symptoms of panic, anxiety, depression, and exhaustion stand out. Even with psychological interventions originating from this context, the lack of protocols with national coverage and effectiveness for the hospital environment is evident, both for patients and families and for professionals who work directly with the virus. Therefore, it is up to Brazil to improve the model presented by the National Health Commission for the People's Republic of China, or build our own protocols according to the sociocultural context, comprising their different forms of communication and confrontation. In addition, it to Considering the feelings of tiredness of health professionals is essential, so that actions such as a group to acknowledge emotional demands generated in this pandemic are suggested.

Italia Ti Ascolto [Italy, I am listening]: an app-based group psychological intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic impacted individuals' psychological wellbeing resulting in heightened perceived stress, anxiety, and depression. However, a significant issue in accessing psychological care during a lockdown is the lack of access to in-person interventions. In this regard, research has shown the efficacy and utility of psychological app-based interventions. 'Italia Ti Ascolto' (ITA) has been developed as a population tailored internet-based intervention to offer an online professional solution for psychological support needs. The ITA app is available on iOS and Android systems. Users completed a baseline assessment on emotion regulation strategies (cognitive reappraisal and expressive suppression), psychological stress, anxiety, depression, and perceived social support. Participants could select among several one-hour long clinical groups held by expert psychotherapists. After every session, people were asked to complete a quick users' satisfaction survey. Our contribution presents ITA's intervention protocol and discusses preliminary data on psychological variables collected at baseline. Data showed significant associations between emotion regulation strategies, symptoms of depression and anxiety, and level of stress. Moreover, the role of perceived social support is considered. Future developments and implications for clinical practice and treatment are discussed.

Intervention: Enhancing mental health and well-being around the world

This chapter discusses key conceptual and practical issues related to psychological interventions in a global context. The foundations section reviews the need for mental health services globally, highlighting the potential for psychologists to apply their knowledge and skills around the world and the competencies needed for such work. It highlights the need for psychologists and psychological interventions worldwide. The chapter considers ethical issues, cultural competencies, and the World Health Organization's core competencies in global mental health. In the Applications section, the chapter highlights diverse pathways to care and clinical service settings, such as health care settings, schools, families, and communities. It discusses levels of intervention (i.e., treatment, prevention, strengths-based) and points out emergent areas of global concern in need of psychological interventions, such as the climate crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic. Along the way, the chapter showcases eight diverse examples of intervention work in international psychology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Psychological Factors Explaining the COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on Mental Health: The Role of Meaning, Beliefs, and Perceptions of Vulnerability and Mortality.

This study tested an expanded version of the explanatory model of the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health proposed by Milman and colleagues. Participants (N = 680) completed an online survey on demographic variables associated with poor pandemic mental health, COVID-19 stressors, mental health symptoms, and pandemic-related psychological processes we hypothesized as mediating mechanisms explaining the negative mental health effects of the COVID-19 stressors. Results indicated that these psychological processes (core belief violation, meaning made of the pandemic, vulnerability, and mortality perception) explained the severity of mental health symptoms to a far greater extent than COVID-19 stressors and demographics combined. In addition, these psychological processes mediated the impact of COVID-19 stressors on all mental health outcomes. Specifically, COVID-19 stressors were associated with increased core belief violation, decreased meaning making, and more intense perceived vulnerability and mortality. In turn, those whose core beliefs were more violated by the pandemic, who made less meaning of the pandemic, and who perceived a more pronounced vulnerability and mortality experienced a worse mental health condition. This study's results suggest some possible ways of intervention in pandemic-like events useful for limiting such impact at the individual, group, social and political levels.

Autistic young people's experiences of remote psychological interventions during COVID-19.

LAY ABSTRACT: Recently, therapy has been delivered at a distance (i.e. remotely) to help control the spread of coronavirus. Clinicians have voiced concerns that remote delivery is unsuitable for certain individuals, including those who are autistic, but they have also highlighted potential benefits for autistic individuals. Benefits include some individuals feeling more comfortable receiving therapy at home. This is the first study to interview autistic individuals about their experience of remote therapy. Participants were six young people aged 15-18 years and eight clinicians. Participants described their experience of remote delivery, including challenges, benefits, and suggestions. Most of these supported previous research findings, but some were new or provided further insight into those already identified. A newly identified challenge was knowing online social etiquette. All participants found aspects of the experience challenging, but all identified benefits and most voiced that remote sessions should be offered to young people. Participants further identified individual characteristics that may make someone less suited to remote delivery (e.g. shyness). They also identified ways of making the experience of remote delivery easier (e.g. sitting with a pet). Young people's and clinicians' views were similar overall, with only subtle differences. For example, young people uniquely voiced that remote delivery was similar to in-person, that benefits were hard to identify, and provided distinct reasons for the social interaction feeling less intense remotely. Findings may be used to improve remote delivery, for guiding future research, and as a case for continuing to offer it to those who may most benefit.

Community Initiated Care: A blue-print for the practical realization of contextual behavioral science

There is a vast unmet need for mental health care and support in the United States and globally. Although expanding specialty services is needed, this is neither sufficient nor necessary to comprehensively address the current and future demand. Traditional models of care which have focused on mental disorders, while useful for many, remain out of reach, unaffordable, and not timely for helping the vast majority of individuals in need of mental health support. There is a growing movement of community-based networks and organizations which aim to fill this need by harnessing existing community resources to promote mental health and prevent mental and substance use disorders. This paper describes our effort to derive a blue-print for an approach, which we call "Community Initiated Care (CIC)", building on these real-world experiences and the growing science on lay person delivered brief psychosocial interventions in community settings. CIC serves as a back-bone for training lay persons to support the mental health and well-being of others in their communities. CIC is envisioned as an equitable, efficient, safe, and timely form of contextualized support to promote mental health and prevent selfharm, mental health and substance use problems. CIC is not intended to replace clinical interventions;instead, we envisage the supportive encounter to use a person-centered approach to bolster existing positive coping skills, promote positive social engagement, reduce risk of future mental health problems, and encourage other forms of help seeking when appropriate. This article explores how our thinking is aligned with and responsive to the strategies and tactics of the Contextual Behavioral Science Task Force to promote programs that are multidimensional, process-based, prosocial, practical, and multi-level. Development, implementation, and evaluation of CIC will not only advance contextual behavioral science but also move society forward to more equitable mental health and well-being.

Remote mental health care interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic: An umbrella review.

Mitigating the COVID-19 related disruptions in mental health care services is crucial in a time of increased mental health disorders. Numerous reviews have been conducted on the process of implementing technology-based mental health care during the pandemic. The research question of this umbrella review was to examine what the impact of COVID-19 was on access and delivery of mental health services and how mental health services have changed during the pandemic. A systematic search for systematic reviews and meta-analyses was conducted up to August 12, 2022, and 38 systematic reviews were identified. Main disruptions during COVID-19 were reduced access to outpatient mental health care and reduced admissions and earlier discharge from inpatient care. In response, synchronous telemental health tools such as videoconferencing were used to provide remote care similar to pre-COVID care, and to a lesser extent asynchronous virtual mental health tools such as apps. Implementation of synchronous tools were facilitated by time-efficiency and flexibility during the pandemic but there was a lack of accessibility for specific vulnerable populations. Main barriers among practitioners and patients to use digital mental health tools were poor technological literacy, particularly when preexisting inequalities existed, and beliefs about reduced therapeutic alliance particularly in case of severe mental disorders. Absence of organizational support for technological implementation of digital mental health interventions due to inadequate IT infrastructure, lack of funding, as well as lack of privacy and safety, challenged implementation during COVID-19. Reviews were of low to moderate quality, covered heterogeneously designed primary studies and lacked findings of implementation in low- and middle-income countries. These gaps in the evidence were particularly prevalent in studies conducted early in the pandemic. This umbrella review shows that during the COVID-19 pandemic, practitioners and mental health care institutions mainly used synchronous telemental health tools, and to a lesser degree asynchronous tools to enable continued access to mental health care for patients. Numerous barriers to these tools were identified, and call for further improvements. In addition, more high quality research into comparative effectiveness and working mechanisms may improve scalability of mental health care in general and in future infectious disease outbreaks.

Psychological Reaction of Teachers in the Context of the Covid Pandemic 19

The Covid 19 pandemic, is a period with a strong impact in all areas of the families, their social, economic, political and educational life. The rules and sanitary measures to prevent the spread of the pandemic, the educational policies, as well as the isolation, quarantine of some teachers, imposed the transition from classical education to online one. This transition, and also the need for digitalization, have led to major changes in teaching activity and implicitly have affected the well-being of teachers. The present study investigates the psychological reactions of 73 teachers as well as the effectiveness of a psychological intervention applied to 15 teachers, who showed severe psychological reactions during the pandemic period. The motivation of the study derives from the need to offer quick methods and techniques for managing the emotional states they went through. The psychological intervention model presented in the article, aims to reduce the symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression that teachers experience during a pandemic situations, and also to help them apply psychological intervention techniques to regain their well-being). [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Postmodern Openings / Deschideri Postmoderne is the property of Lumen Publishing House and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Online psychological interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review

COVID-19 has infected thousands of people worldwide, causing social, economic and health impacts. Protective measures with emphasis on mental health were designed to contain the impacts. Objective: we sought to analyze which interventional strategies are being used in the pandemic. Methodology: This systematic review included studies on psychological interventions from the BVS-PSl, LILACS and PubMed databases. Results: Of the 26 articles analyzed, 26.92% were from national journals and 73.07% from international journals. Conclusions: The scarcity of training or lack of experience of professionals regarding ICTs was not an impeditive component for the online services to take place. The population benefited from the rapid response to mental health care offered by the professionals. Training in ICTs needs to occur continuously. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Portuguese) A COVID-19 infectou milhares de pessoas no mundo, causando impactos sociais, economicos e na saude. Medidas protetivas com enfase em saude mental foram elaboradas para conter os impactos. Objetivo: buscou-se analisar quais estrategias interventivas estao sendo usadas na pandemia. Metodologia: esta revisao sistematica incluiu estudos sobre intervencoes psicologicas dos bancos de dados da BVS-PSI, LILACS e PubMed. Resultados: Dos 26 artigos analisados, 26,92% foram de periodicos nacionais e 73,07% de periodicos internacionais. Conclusoes: A escassez de treinamentos ou falta de experiencia dos profissionais acerca das TICs nao foi componente impeditivo para que os atendimentos online acontecessem. A populacao se beneficiou da rapida resposta de assistencia a saude mental oferecida pelos profissionais. Os treinamentos em TICs precisam ocorrer de forma continua. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

Exploring the Necessity of Psychological Rounds and Psychological Interventions in General Hospitals in the Post-COVID-19 Period.

Objective: To explore the necessity of psychological rounds and psychological intervention in the post-COVID-19 period in a general hospital. Methods: Based on the current pandemic influence on Chinese people's psychology, the medical experience, and environment were analyzed, and the feasibility of psychological evaluation and intervention were appraised with the psychological changes that might be brought by the medical behaviors, especially for surgical operations. Results: Nowadays, the pandemic is under full control in China, although the pandemic is rampant abroad. In China, the "Normalized pandemic prevention" phase has begun. In the post-COVID-19 period, the prolonged pandemic has made numerous people pessimistic, angry, and other negative emotions. Several general hospitals are facing huge influences: under the influence of anxiety, such as "higher hospital-acquired infection rate," the patient attendance rate is reduced, and the hospital income is sharply reduced. Doctor-patient conflicts are more likely to occur during the medical procedures, affecting the medical experience, and reducing the rate of re-visit and referral. Conclusion: After analyzing a series of "endogenous" and "exogenous" factors of medical procedures in a general hospital in the post-pandemic period, it suggests that anxiety and depression caused by uncertainties in the medical procedures may be more obvious. Also, it is necessary to pay attention to the psychological status of patients and carry out psychological rounds and psychological interventions in general hospitals. The service quality can be improved, the medical experience can be ameliorated, and it can help general hospitals to turn "crisis" into "opportunity," which also brings better development.

Conceptual Invariance, Trajectories, and Outcome Associations of Working Alliance in Unguided and Guided Internet-Based Psychological Interventions: Secondary Analysis of a Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: The role of working alliance remains unclear for many forms of internet-based interventions (IBIs), a set of effective psychotherapy alternatives that do not require synchronous interactions between patients and therapists. OBJECTIVE: This study examined the conceptual invariance, trajectories, and outcome associations of working alliance across an unguided IBI and guided IBIs that incorporated clinician support through asynchronous text messaging or video messaging. METHODS: Adults with high education attainment (n=145) with subclinical levels of anxiety, stress, or depressive symptoms were randomized to 1 of 3 treatment conditions for 7 weeks. All participants received treatments from MyCompass, an unguided IBI using cognitive behavior therapy. Participants in condition 2 and 3 received supplemental, asynchronous clinician support through text and video, respectively. Working alliance with the IBIs was measured weekly using select items from the 12-item version of the Agnew Relationship Measure. Symptom and functional outcomes were assessed at baseline, at the end of treatment, and 1-month follow-up. RESULTS: Working alliance with the IBIs was conceptually invariant across the 3 conditions. Working alliance followed a quadratic pattern of change over time for all conditions and declined significantly only in the text-support condition. After controlling for baseline symptoms, higher baseline levels of working alliance predicted less depression and less functional impairment at follow-up, whereas faster increases in working alliance predicted less worry at the end of treatment and at follow-up, all of which only occurred in the video-support condition. CONCLUSIONS: Working alliance with the IBIs was generally established in the initial sessions. Although working alliance is conceptually invariant across IBIs with or without clinician support, the associations between working alliance and treatment outcomes among IBIs may differ depending on clinician involvement and the modalities of support. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05122429; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05122429.

Psychological Intervention and COVID-19: What We Know So Far and What We Can Do.

The coronavirus COVID-19 and the global pandemic has already had a substantial disruptive impact on society, posing major challenges to the provision of mental health services in a time of crisis, and carrying the spectre of an increased burden to mental health, both in terms of existing psychiatric disorder, and emerging psychological distress from the pandemic. In this paper we provide a framework for understanding the key challenges for psychologically informed mental health care during and beyond the pandemic. We identify three groups that can benefit from psychological approaches to mental health, and/or interventions relating to COVID-19. These are (i) healthcare workers engaged in frontline response to the pandemic and their patients; (ii) individuals who will experience the emergence of new mental health distress as a function of being diagnosed with COVID-19, or losing family and loved ones to the illness, or the psychological effects of prolonged social distancing; and (iii) individuals with existing mental health conditions who are either diagnosed with COVID-19 or whose experience of social distancing exacerbates existing vulnerabilities. Drawing on existing literature and our own experience of adapting treatments to the crisis we suggest a number of salient points to consider in identifying risks and offering support to all three groups. We also offer a number of practical and technical considerations for working psychotherapeutically with existing patients where COVID-19 restrictions have forced a move to online or technologically mediated delivery of psychological interventions.

Pilot exploration of low-intensity psychoeducation workbook interventions in a prison setting, adapted for use throughout the COVID-19 pandemic

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the use of low intensity in-cell workbooks within a psychological therapies service for male prisoners, an intervention adapted for use during the COVID-19 pandemic. It seeks to explore the effectiveness of the intervention in reducing psychological distress, explore individuals’ progression through the service following engagement with the workbooks and, finally, to understand individual’s experiences of the intervention through evaluating feedback provided. Design/methodology/approach: CORE-10 scores from 66 male prisoners at a Category C prison were evaluated pre and post completion of an adapted in-cell workbook intervention, to explore the potential effectiveness of the intervention in reducing psychological distress. Qualitative feedback given by participants was also explored to understand individual’s experiences of engaging with the intervention. Findings: Evaluation of 66 male prisoners revealed significant reductions in psychological distress on the CORE-10. Findings demonstrated that over half of men included in the evaluation were “stepped-up” for further interventions as per the stepped-care treatment model. Feedback forms highlighted the value of the therapeutic relationship and a “something versus nothing” approach. Research limitations/implications: The paper considers several limitations to the research approach, of which future studies should seek to explore when carrying out similar research. Practical implications: The paper includes implications for the use of low intensity self-help interventions in prison psychological services, during a time when the provision of face-to-face interventions was limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Originality/value: The paper explores the use of self-help materials in psychological treatment settings, of which there is very little research on in prisons. In addition, the paper contributes to the body of research on psychological well-being during the COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022, Emerald Publishing Limited.