EHI Primary Care has learned that the Department of Health is preparing to include the use of computer software as part of new pilots of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for depression in London and Yorkshire.
The announcement follows the National Institute for Clinical Excellence’s independent appraisal committee clearing Beating the Blues, a CD-ROM and web-based ‘talking therapy’ programme, for treatment of mild to moderate depression and another programme, ST Solution’s FearFighter, for management of phobia.
Nigel Brabbins, chief executive of Ultrasis, manufacturers of Beating the Blues, told E-Health Insider that the company would be involved in the trials and were currently undergoing talks with the DH for how the program would be used.
The two pilot areas, in Newham, east London and Doncaster, south Yorkshire, were picked by the DH because of their contrasting demographics. According to the DH, several different models of cognitive behaviour therapy will be tested for implementation in collaboration with local employers and the voluntary sector.
Details of how the computer programme will be used are not yet clear. While CCBT can be used on its own or along with face-to-face therapy, the purpose of the pilots are to concentrate on treatement of mild depression through therapy as opposed to prescription drugs.
Brabbins was careful to stress that the two pilot sites were only part of the DH’s eventual rollout of CCBT. "We mustn’t get too hung up about two pilots being announced," he said. "By March 2007 CCBT will be rolled out and implemented nationally. That’s in the public domain."
The pilots were announced last week by health secretary Patricia Hewitt, in a statement by the DH that heralded "the end of the Prozac nation".
Hewitt told the National Mental Health Partnership Conference: "I hope that these pilot sites will provide real, tangible evidence of the effectiveness of investing in talking therapies. They will help break the cycle of deprivation, where poor health leads to unemployment and wasted lives as people fail to reach their full potential."
Paul Farmer, chief executive of mental health charity Mind, said: "Mind has long been campaigning for a wider choice of therapies, including talking therapies, to be readily available on the NHS for all who need them.
"We hope that these pilot schemes will be a first step towards making this a reality, and look forward to the scheme’s extension to cover the whole population."
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