Investigation of the utility of the acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) framework for fostering self-care in clinical psychology trainees.

2015 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 144-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Ian Pakenham
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth Po-Lun Fung ◽  
Mandana Vahabi ◽  
Masoomeh Moosapoor ◽  
Abdolreza Akbarian ◽  
Josephine Pui-Hing Wong

BACKGROUND Psychological distress, isolation, feeling of powerlessness, and limited social support are realities faced by temporary migrant live–in caregivers in Canada. Furthermore, they experience multiple barriers in accessing mental health services due to their long work hours, limited knowledge about health resources, precarious employment, and immigration status. OBJECTIVE Women Empowerment - Caregiver Acceptance & Resilience E-Learning (WE2CARE) project is a pilot intervention research project that aims to promote mental well being and resiliency of migrant live-in caregivers. The objectives include exploring the effectiveness of this program in: (1) reducing psychological distress (depression, anxiety, and stress); (2) promoting committed actions of self-care; and (3) building mutual support social networks. Further, participants’ satisfaction with the intervention and their perceived barriers and facilitators to practicing the self-care strategies embedded in WE2CARE will be examined. METHODS Thirty-six live- in caregivers residing in Great Toronto Area (GTA) will be recruited and randomly assigned to intervention and waitlist control groups. The intervention group will receive a 6-week web-based psychosocial intervention that will be based on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Standardized self-reported surveys will be administered online pre-, post-, and 6-week post-intervention to assess mental distress (DASS 21), psychological flexibility (AAQ-2), mindfulness (CAMS-R) and Multi-System Model of Resilience (MSMR-I). Two focus groups will be held with a subset of participants to explore their feedback on the utility of the WE2CARE program. RESULTS WE2CARE was funded in January 2019 for a year. The protocol was approved by the research ethics boards of Ryerson University (REB 2019-036) in February 2019, and University of Toronto (RIS37623) in May 2019. Data collection started upon ethics approval and was completed by May 2020. A total of 29 caregivers completed the study and 20 participated in the focus groups. Data analyses are in progress and results will be published in 2021. CONCLUSIONS WE2CARE can be a promising approach in reducing stress, promoting resilience, and providing a virtual space for peer emotional support and collaborative learning among socially isolated and marginalized women. The results of this pilot study will inform the adaptation and utility of online delivery of ACT based psychological intervention in promoting mental health among disadvantaged and vulnerable populations. CLINICALTRIAL None


2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (3) ◽  
pp. 34-49
Author(s):  
Ameneh Khalatbari ◽  
◽  
Shohreh Ghorbanshiroudi ◽  
Mohammad Reza Zarbakhsh ◽  
Taher Tizdast ◽  
...  

Background: Diabetes is one of the most common diseases affecting peoplechr('39')s mental health and the body. Therefore, psychological interventions seem necessary to solve the problems caused by this disease. Objective: The present study aimed to compare the effectiveness of Compassion-focused Therapy (CFT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and commitment to self-care behavior and glycosylated hemoglobin in patients with type 2 diabetes at Tonekabon City Hospital. Materials and Methods: This clinical trial was a one-step cluster sampling study, including 200 patients who were randomly selected from all patients with type 2 diabetes in Tonekabon City Hospital and, at the same time, the scale of self-care behavior of Tobert, Glasgow, and Hamspon (2002). A total of 45 people were randomly selected and divided into three groups of 15 people, including two intervention groups and one control group, 12 compassionate therapy sessions, and 12 admission-based treatment sessions, each lasting 45 minutes. Meetings for each intervention were performed twice a week with an interval of 3 days. At the end of treatment, all three groups were retested. Results: Due to the comparison of the mean differences between the two treatment groups for self-care and glycosylated hemoglobin (5.012) (-2.145), respectively, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy was more effective than compassion-focused therapy. Conclusion: The results owed a positive trend and increased self-care behavior and balanced glycosylated hemoglobin level in the follow-up and effectiveness of both approaches and the superiority of the acceptance and commitment-based treatment approach. Therefore, this treatment can be used in different conditions to improve the lives of patients with type 2 diabetes.


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