A pilot study of a scalable training programme for coaches delivering webSTAIR

Area of Science:

• Mental Health
• Digital Interventions
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Accessible, low-cost digital mental health programs are expanding.
• Scalable training for digital intervention delivery needs development.
• Coach-supported digital interventions outperform self-guided programs.

Purpose of the Study:

• Evaluate a brief coach training program for webSTAIR, a digital intervention for trauma.
• Assess the effectiveness of a 'light-touch' training strategy for mental health counselors.
• Examine client outcomes following coach-delivered digital trauma treatment.

Main Methods:

• A brief coach training program (2-hour workshop, 6x1-hour consultations) was delivered.
• 68 mental health counselors were trained to deliver the webSTAIR program.
• 99 veteran clients received coach-supported digital trauma treatment.

Main Results:

• 51% of coaches completed the training program.
• Veterans showed significant improvements in functioning (d=0.88).
• Clinically meaningful reductions in emotion dysregulation (d=0.97), PTSD (d=0.61), and depression (d=0.53) were observed.

Conclusions:

• 'Light-touch' training strategies are effective for digital mental health interventions.
• Brief training programs can be integrated into the dissemination of evidence-based digital tools.
• Improving training completion rates for busy providers requires further consideration.