Training models for psychiatry in primary care: a new frontier

Area of Science:

• Primary Care Mental Health
• Psychological Therapies Training
• General Practice Psychiatry

Background:

• Australian Government policies emphasize general practitioners (GPs) in delivering evidence-based psychological treatments.
• GPs require enhanced training in therapies like cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) to meet these demands.
• This pilot study explores CBT group supervision as a potential training model for GPs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effectiveness of cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) group supervision for general practitioners (GPs).
• To assess improvements in GP skills, knowledge, and confidence in delivering psychological treatments.
• To evaluate the impact of enhanced GP training on patient mental health outcomes.

Main Methods:

• Two groups of GPs (n=9) and one comparison group of psychiatric registrars (n=4) participated.
• Participants completed eight 1.5-hour sessions of CBT group supervision over 8 months.
• Pre- to post-training measures assessed GP performance and patient outcomes, followed by focus groups for feedback.

Main Results:

• Randomization tests showed significant improvements in GPs' confidence and knowledge of CBT post-supervision.
• Focus group feedback confirmed enhanced CBT skills among participating GPs.
• Patient mental health outcomes were measured but not detailed in the abstract.

Conclusions:

• CBT group supervision shows promise as a training model for enhancing psychological therapy delivery in primary care.
• A shift towards briefer therapy models, like brief CBT, may be more practical for general practice.
• Further large-scale research is recommended to validate these findings.