Dataset Information

Attitudes towards digital treatment for depression: A European stakeholder survey.

ABSTRACT: Background:The integration of digital treatments into national mental health services is on the agenda in the European Union. The E-COMPARED consortium conducted a survey aimed at exploring stakeholders' knowledge, acceptance and expectations of digital treatments for depression, and at identifying factors that might influence their opinions when considering the implementation of these approaches. Method:An online survey was conducted in eight European countries: France, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and The United Kingdom. Organisations representing government bodies, care providers, service-users, funding/insurance bodies, technical developers and researchers were invited to participate in the survey. The participating countries and organisations reflect the diversity in health care infrastructures and e-health implementation across Europe. Results:A total of 764 organisations were invited to the survey during the period March-June 2014, with 175 of these organisations participating in our survey. The participating stakeholders reported moderate knowledge of digital treatments and considered cost-effectiveness to be the primary incentive for integration into care services. Low feasibility of delivery within existing care services was considered to be a primary barrier. Digital treatments were regarded more suitable for milder forms of depression. Stakeholders showed greater acceptability towards blended treatment (the integration of face-to-face and internet sessions within the same treatment protocol) compared to standalone internet treatments. Organisations in countries with developed e-health solutions reported greater knowledge and acceptability of digital treatments. Conclusion:Mental health stakeholders in Europe are aware of the potential benefits of digital interventions. However, there are variations between countries and stakeholders in terms of level of knowledge about such interventions and their feasibility within routine care services. The high acceptance of blended treatments is an interesting finding that indicates a gradual integration of technology into clinical practice may fit the attitudes and needs of stakeholders. The potential of the blended treatment approach, in terms of enhancing acceptance of digital treatment while retaining the benefit of cost-effectiveness in delivery, should be further explored. Funding:The E-COMPARED project has received funding from the European Union Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) under grant agreement no. 603098.

SUBMITTER: Topooco N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6096292 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Attitudes towards digital treatment for depression: A European stakeholder survey.

Topooco Naira N Riper Heleen H Araya Ricardo R Berking Matthias M Brunn Matthias M Chevreul Karine K Cieslak Roman R Ebert David Daniel DD Etchmendy Ernestina E Herrero Rocío R Kleiboer Annet A Krieger Tobias T García-Palacios Azucena A Cerga-Pashoja Arlinda A Smoktunowicz Ewelina E Urech Antoine A Vis Christiaan C Andersson Gerhard G

Internet interventions 20170125

<h4>Background</h4>The integration of digital treatments into national mental health services is on the agenda in the European Union. The E-COMPARED consortium conducted a survey aimed at exploring stakeholders' knowledge, acceptance and expectations of digital treatments for depression, and at identifying factors that might influence their opinions when considering the implementation of these approaches.<h4>Method</h4>An online survey was conducted in eight European countries: France, Germany, ...[more]

PMID: 30135823

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Project description:BackgroundPrevious studies have shown that attitudes towards depression may be influenced by country-specific social and cultural factors. A survey was carried out to collect beliefs on and attitudes toward depression in Italy, which has an established community-based mental health system.MethodsA telephone survey was carried out in a probabilistic sample aged ≥15 years. A 20-item questionnaire was administered to explore knowledge of depression, stigma, causal beliefs, treatment preference, and help-seeking attitudes.ResultsOf the 1001 participants, 98% were aware of depression, and 62% had experienced it, either directly or indirectly. A widespread belief (75%) was that people suffering from depression should avoid talking about their problem. A minority of the sample viewed depression as a condition that should be managed without recourse to external help or a "socially dangerous" illness. Among perceived causes of depression, most respondents mentioned life stressors or physical strains. Psychologists were often indicated as an adequate source of professional help. Half of the sample believed that depression should be pharmacologically treated, but drugs were often seen as addictive. Referring to a primary care physician (PCP) was considered embarrassing; furthermore, many people thought that PCPs are too busy to treat patients suffering from depression.ConclusionsOur findings indicate that depression is seen as a reaction to significant life events that should be overcome with the support of significant others or the help of health professionals (mainly psychologists). However, there are still barriers to the disclosure of depressive symptoms to PCPs, and concerns about the addictive effect of antidepressants. In the presence of a gap between people's beliefs and what health professionals consider appropriate for the treatment of depression, a "shared decision making" approach to treatment selection should be adopted taking into account the patients' preference for psychological interventions to ensure active compliance with effective treatments.

Project description:Results of recent microbicide and pre-exposure prophylaxis clinical trials have shown adherence to be a significant challenge with new HIV prevention technologies. As the vaginal ring containing dapivirine moves into two open label follow-on studies (HOPE/MTN-025 and DREAM) and other antiretroviral-based and multi-purpose prevention technology ring products advance through the development pipeline, there is a need for more accurate and reliable measures of adherence to microbicide ring products. We previously conducted a comprehensive landscape analysis to identify new technologies that could be applied to adherence measurement of vaginal rings containing antiretrovirals. To explore attitudes and perceptions towards the approaches that we identified, we conducted a survey of stakeholders with experience and expertise in microbicide and HIV prevention clinical trials. From May to July 2015 an electronic survey was distributed via email to 894 stakeholders; a total of 206 eligible individuals responded to at least one question and were included in the data analysis. Survey respondents were presented with various objective measures and asked about their perceived acceptability to trial participants, feasibility of implementation by study staff, usefulness for measuring adherence and ethical concerns. Methods that require no additional input from the participant and require no modifications to the existing ring product (i.e., measurement of residual drug or excipient, or a vaginal analyte that enters the ring) were viewed as being more acceptable to trial participants and more feasible to implement in the field. Respondents saw value in using objective measures to provide real-time feedback on adherence. However, approaches that involve unannounced home visits for sample collection or spot checks of ring use, which could provide significant value to adherence feedback efforts, were met with skepticism. Additional research on the acceptability of these methods to potential trial participants and trial staff is recommended.

Project description:BackgroundThe compulsory treatment of anorexia nervosa is a contentious issue. Research suggests that psychiatrists have a range of attitudes towards patients suffering from anorexia nervosa, and towards the use of compulsory treatment for the disorder.MethodsA postal self-completed attitudinal questionnaire was sent to senior psychiatrists in the United Kingdom who were mostly general adult psychiatrists, child and adolescent psychiatrists, or psychiatrists with an interest in eating disorders.ResultsRespondents generally supported a role for compulsory measures under mental health legislation in the treatment of patients with anorexia nervosa. Compared to 'mild' anorexia nervosa, respondents generally were less likely to feel that patients with 'severe' anorexia nervosa were intentionally engaging in weight loss behaviours, were able to control their behaviours, wanted to get better, or were able to reason properly. However, eating disorder specialists were less likely than other psychiatrists to think that patients with 'mild' anorexia nervosa were choosing to engage in their behaviours or able to control their behaviours. Child and adolescent psychiatrists were more likely to have a positive view of the use of parental consent and compulsory treatment for an adolescent with anorexia nervosa. Three factors emerged from factor analysis of the responses named: 'Support for the powers of the Mental Health Act to protect from harm'; 'Primacy of best interests'; and 'Autonomy viewed as being preserved in anorexia nervosa'. Different scores on these factor scales were given in terms of type of specialist and gender.ConclusionIn general, senior psychiatrists tend to support the use of compulsory treatment to protect the health of patients at risk and also to protect the welfare of patients in their best interests. In particular, eating disorder specialists tend to support the compulsory treatment of patients with anorexia nervosa independently of views about their decision-making capacity, while child and adolescent psychiatrists tend to support the treatment of patients with anorexia nervosa in their best interests where decision-making is impaired.

Dataset Information

Attitudes towards digital treatment for depression: A European stakeholder survey.

Publications

Attitudes towards digital treatment for depression: A European stakeholder survey.

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