Managing Unusual Sensory Experiences (MUSE) in At Risk Mental States.
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Managing Unusual Sensory Experiences in people with an At Risk Mental States for psychosis (MUSE-ARMS)
IRAS ID
250475
Contact name
Guy Stephen Dodgson
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS FT
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 26 days
Research summary
The Hearing the Voice research project have been developing a novel treatment approach for Unusual Sensory Experiences, often described as hallucinations. This approach i) uses current psychological understandings to explain voices, ii) is based on a model of different subtypes of voices, and iii) uses an iPad to standardise the approach and to demonstrate key concepts. This research has been mainly conduced on people experiencing a first episode of psychosis (FEP), but clinical staff have told us that the approach is particularly helpful for people who have an At Risk Mental State for psychosis (ARMs), which are people who have weakened psychotic experiences which place them at much higher risk of developing a full psychotic episode.
This study is a feasibility study to investigate whether this approach is acceptable to people with ARMS, to help us refine the treatment and understand more about who can deliver the treatment and over how many sessions. Psychological Therapists who work with ARMs service-users in local Early Intervention in Psychosis services (EIP) are interested in using the treatment manual in their work. We hope to recruit around 20 participants, mostly from TEWV NHS FT, but we also have interested therapists covering NTW NHS FT. The potential participants would have been referred to EIP and have been advised that a psychological approach would be useful. Participants, if they consent to participate, would be asked to complete a baseline assessment by a member of the Clinical Research Network before starting treatment. They would then be offered a treatment of 2-4 sessions and would then complete further assessment after finishing the treatment. Both the clinicians and participants would also be asked questions about whether they found the treatment acceptable and how it could be improved.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/NE/0260
Date of REC Opinion
25 Sep 2018
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion