Transforming Psychotherapy for Chronically Ill Patients

The primary objective of this research is to pilot test a brief mental heath treatment specifically tailored to meet the needs of chronically ill patients with anxiety and/or depression. Using an open-trial format, the proposed study will examine the feasibility of a brief psychosocial intervention. Primary outcomes will assess intervention effects on patient and clinician rated symptoms of anxiety and depression. If proven feasible and effective among this group of participants, the intervention (due to its brief format and focus on medically ill patient needs) will possess unique characteristics that will increase the ability of medical care settings to implement mental health treatments, and will provide valuable pilot data for the development of a larger research project to determine the efficacy of this intervention among a larger group of chronically ill patients relative to usual care.