Over the past several years, the focus of public mental health treatment and support has increasingly been on “evidence based practices.” Evidence-based practices are treatments that have been shown through clinical research to produce positive outcomes.
In recent years, Shiawassee County Community Mental Health Authority has implemented many evidence-based practices. One that SCCMHA started using in 2005 is Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). DBT was designed as a treatment for individuals who are diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder but is currently being studied to treat many other diagnoses including anxiety disorders, substance use disorders as well as eating disorders.
Individuals who have a diagnosis of Borderline Personality Disorder often have multiple other psychiatric diagnoses and often experience suicidal ideation, self harm behaviors and have multiple psychiatric hospitalizations. Historically, it has been a challenge to find a treatment modality that is effective in improving the quality of life and reducing high risk behaviors for these individuals.
DBT treatment is meant to improve the individual’s ability to regulate intense emotions and behaviors in order to create a life worth living. The modes of treatment that DBT uses to accomplish this is weekly individual therapy, weekly Skill Training Group, availability to DBT Phone Coaching, as well as access to a DBT trained Peer Support Specialist.
The DBT team at SCCMHA has been intensively trained and is certified by the Department of Community Health. The team consists of Emergency Services workers, Case Coordinators, DBT therapists and a Peer Support Specialist and are required to meet for weekly consultation in order to maintain the certification. In 2007, the team began collecting data. This data demonstrates that DBT treatment has a significant impact on reducing targeted behaviors such as self harm incidences.
Similar to DBT, SCCMHA offers many other services that are evidence-based. The future of public mental health is demonstrating that intervention is successful. Without using evidence-based treatment, one runs the risk of providing a mediocre service.
Contributed by: Stacy Fisher, LMSW, CAADC, Supervisor for Adult Community Services
It's very easy to find out any matter on net as compared to textbooks, as I found this piece of writing at this web page.
ReplyDeleteAlso visit my webpage :: samsung galaxy note 2