Treatment Delivery Method and Wellbeing: The Mediating Role of Internalized Stigma in Veterans with Serious Mental Illness
Faculty Mentor
Sara Haden
Major/Area of Research
Clinical Psychology
Description
INTRODUCTION: As the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a shift towards teletherapy, the present study sought to evaluate the comparative efficacy of treatment delivered via telehealth within the context of the Brooklyn VA Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Center (PRRC), an intensive, recovery-oriented outpatient program for Veterans with serious mental illness (SMI). The existing literature has suggested promising outcomes for telehealth as an alternative to in-person treatment at less intensive levels of mental health care. However, the efficacy of these modalities within intensive outpatient (IOP) and partial hospitalization programs (PHP), such as PRRCs, has received relatively little research attention.
METHOD: To address the gaps in longitudinal research on telehealth efficacy and change in stigma and wellbeing at higher levels of care, this study employed a retrospective chart review to assess changes in internalized stigma and wellbeing among 106 Veterans engaged in PRRC treatment. By analyzing this data, the study aimed to establish whether treatment delivery method (ranging from entirely virtual to entirely inperson) appears to influence changes in self-reported internalized stigma and wellbeing in Veterans receiving at least 3 months of treatment. A simultaneous multiple regression was conducted to assess the mediated relationship between these variables.
CONCLUSION: Regression analyses did not indicate a significant effect of treatment delivery method on change in stigma or change in wellbeing (b = -0.13, p = 0.90), indicating that remote treatment may be a viable alternative to in-person care for Veterans in need of higher levels of care. The analysis did reveal a significant relationship between change in internalized stigma and change in wellbeing (b = -4.52, p < 0.001), indicating that internalized stigma may be a worthwhile target of treatment within this population.
Treatment Delivery Method and Wellbeing: The Mediating Role of Internalized Stigma in Veterans with Serious Mental Illness
INTRODUCTION: As the COVID-19 pandemic prompted a shift towards teletherapy, the present study sought to evaluate the comparative efficacy of treatment delivered via telehealth within the context of the Brooklyn VA Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Center (PRRC), an intensive, recovery-oriented outpatient program for Veterans with serious mental illness (SMI). The existing literature has suggested promising outcomes for telehealth as an alternative to in-person treatment at less intensive levels of mental health care. However, the efficacy of these modalities within intensive outpatient (IOP) and partial hospitalization programs (PHP), such as PRRCs, has received relatively little research attention.
METHOD: To address the gaps in longitudinal research on telehealth efficacy and change in stigma and wellbeing at higher levels of care, this study employed a retrospective chart review to assess changes in internalized stigma and wellbeing among 106 Veterans engaged in PRRC treatment. By analyzing this data, the study aimed to establish whether treatment delivery method (ranging from entirely virtual to entirely inperson) appears to influence changes in self-reported internalized stigma and wellbeing in Veterans receiving at least 3 months of treatment. A simultaneous multiple regression was conducted to assess the mediated relationship between these variables.
CONCLUSION: Regression analyses did not indicate a significant effect of treatment delivery method on change in stigma or change in wellbeing (b = -0.13, p = 0.90), indicating that remote treatment may be a viable alternative to in-person care for Veterans in need of higher levels of care. The analysis did reveal a significant relationship between change in internalized stigma and change in wellbeing (b = -4.52, p < 0.001), indicating that internalized stigma may be a worthwhile target of treatment within this population.