title: Group cognitive processing therapy delivered to veterans via telehealth: a pilot cohort.
abstract: The authors report clinical findings from the pilot cohort of the first prospective, noninferiority-designed randomized clinical trial evaluating the clinical outcomes of delivering a cognitive-behavioral group intervention for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), cognitive processing therapy (CPT), via video teleconferencing (VT) compared to the in-person modality. The treatment was delivered to 13 veterans with PTSD residing on the Hawaiian Islands. Results support the general feasibility and safety of using VT. Both groups showed clinically meaningful reductions in PTSD symptoms and no significant between-group differences on clinical or process outcome variables. In keeping with treatment manual recommendations, a few changes were made to the CPT protocol to accommodate this population. Novel aspects of this trial and lessons learned are discussed.
authors.affiliation: National Center for PTSD-Pacific Islands Division, Department of Veterans Affairs Pacific Islands Healthcare System, Honolulu, HI 96819, USA. Leslie.Morland@va.gov
authors.forename: Leslie A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Morland
authors.forename: Anna K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Hynes
authors.forename: Margaret-Anne
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Mackintosh
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Resick
authors.forename: Kathleen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Chard
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015928:Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006254:Hawaii; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011615:Psychotherapy, Group / Q000458:organization & administration*; D057566:Self Report; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000628:therapy; D013685:Telecommunications; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*