Training community providers in evidence-based treatment for PTSD: Outcomes of a novel consultation program

Extensive research supports the use of prolonged exposure (PE) and cognitive processing therapy (CPT), for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in veterans and service members. PE and CPT have been disseminated nationally across the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities. Many service members and veterans receive care outside the VA where access to these gold standard psychotherapies can be limited. This paper presents a novel program developed to train community providers in the use of PE and CPT and their application to veterans with PTSD through the use of a medium-touch approach to consultation.

Four 2-day trainings (2 in PE, 2 in CPT) were delivered to a total of 170 participants over an 8-month period. A subset of approximately 10 providers per training (n = 42) received 6 months of weekly, group phone consultation following the 2-day training. All providers were assessed pre- and posttraining, as well as 3 and 6 months after their training. Outcomes for the training workshop alone and the training plus 6 months of consultation were compared.

While participant knowledge, t = -22.57, p < .001 and comfort (χ² = 74.00, p < .001) with PE and CPT significantly increased immediately following the 2-day training, those who received consultation were more likely to implement (χ² = 20.88, p < .001) and either complete or be close to completing PE or CPT with patients (χ² = 20.57, p < .001) 6 months following training.

Despite some limitations, these preliminary data support that consultation is an important component to include in PTSD therapy training and implementation in the community. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).