BHSS News
August 1, 2019 | Publications
Lay-delivered Behavioral Activation for Depressed Senior Center Clients: Pilot RCT
This pilot randomized control trial examined the feasibility of training volunteers to deliver a behavioral health intervention “Do More, Feel Better”, and looked at the acceptability, impact and safety of this intervention. Pilot data found “Do More, Feel Better” has the potential of transferring evidence-based behavioral interventions to the hands of supervised lay volunteers and can address the insufficient workforce providing geriatric mental health services.
December 4, 2019 | Publications
Acceptability of a Lay-delivered Intervention for Depression in Senior Centers
This study examined the implementation of lay-delivered behavioral interventions to help seniors with depression to increase participation in rewarding activities. The study found high depression rates among senior center clients and supported the acceptability of lay-delivered behavioral interventions.
October 13, 2020 | Publications
Modernizing Training in Psychotherapy Competencies With Adaptive Learning Systems: Proof of Concept
This proof-of-concept study assessed the feasibility, acceptability, and effectiveness of an intelligent tutoring system (ITS) as a classroom adjunct to improve training bachelor of social work (BSW) students in client engagement strategies.
February 1, 2021 | Publications
Making Psychotherapy Available in the United States: Implementation Challenges and Solutions
This article examines the inadequate treatment of mental illness in the US health care system, and advocates that diverse stakeholders come together to ensure that evidence-based psychotherapy is more readily available within the system.
November 5, 2021 | Announcements & News
To strengthen Washington’s mental health workforce, UW wants to train undergrads as first-line providers
Seattle Times staff reporter Hannah Furfaro features the Behavioral Health Support Specialist Clinical Training program and interviews Dr. Anna Ratzliff and others about the impetus for this work.
May 1, 2022 | Publications
“Do More, Feel Better”: Pilot RCT of Lay-Delivered Behavioral Activation for Depressed Senior Center Clients
This randomized control trial tested “Do More, Feel Better”, a lay-delivered Behavioral Activation intervention for senior center clients with depression. It found that evidence-based behavioral interventions delivered by lay volunteers can increase activity levels and reduce depression severity in older adults; and that this approach has the potential to address the insufficient workforce available to meet the mental health needs of community-dwelling older adults.
