This is the first randomized trial comparing group mindfulness treatment and individual cognitive behavioral therapy in patients with depression and anxiety in primary care.
The researchers, led by Professor Jan Sundquist, conducted the study in 16 primary health care centers in Skåne, a province in southern Sweden. In each primary care school, they trained two mindfulness instructors from different professional groups during a six-day training course.
The treatment lasted 8 weeks. General practitioner and mindfulness instructor Ola Schenström designed the mindfulness training program and model for training instructors.
A total of 215 patients participated in the study. Before and after treatment, patients in the mindfulness and regular treatment groups answered questionnaires that assessed the severity of their depression and anxiety.
Self-reported symptoms of depression and anxiety decreased in both groups during the 8-week treatment period. There was no statistical difference between the two treatments.
“The results of the study indicate that group mindfulness treatment, delivered by certified primary care instructors, is as effective a treatment method as individual cognitive behavioral therapy for the treatment of depression and anxiety,” says Jan Sundquist.
“This means that group mindfulness treatment should be considered as an alternative to individual psychotherapy, especially in primary care centers that cannot provide individual therapy to everyone.”
The Center for Research in Primary Care is a collaboration between Lund University and Region Skåne (the county council in Skåne).
Publication:
Mindfulness group therapy in primary care patients with depression, anxiety and stress and adjustment disorders: a randomized controlled trial – Jan Sundquist, Åsa Lilja, Karolina Palmér, Ashfaque A. Memon, Xiao Wang, Leena Maria Johansson, Kristina Sundquist – British Journal of Psychiatry, online published on November 27, 2014