Non-Attendance to CBT in people with Medically Unexplained Symptoms
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Non-attendance to CBT in Patients with Medically Unexplained Symptoms
IRAS ID
258789
Contact name
Kimberly Dienes
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
NHS001536, Sponsor Reference Number
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, 30 days
Research summary
This study is a qualitative inquiry into the experiences of individuals with Medically Unexplained Symptoms (MUS) who do not attend Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) appointments. MUS is an umbrella term used to refer to chronic physical symptoms that are investigated and for which no disease process is found which could explain the symptoms. It is estimated that approximately 20% of the population experiences symptoms that are medically unexplained. Research shows that explaining MUS in terms of unhelpful beliefs about and behavioural responses to symptoms (“cognitions and behaviours”) is helpful. Similarly, CBT based on these explanations has been shown to be a useful treatment strategy, particularly when delivered alongside input from other professionals, such as occupational therapy and physiotherapy. Amongst individuals with MUS, there appears to be a range of complex factors affecting the acceptability of this label i.e. experiences of stigma.
Adults with a diagnosis of MUS will be approached from Leeds and York Partnership Foundation Trust (LYPFT) Outpatient Liaison Psychiatry service. A sample of individuals who did not accept their CBT referral or who dropped out of CBT prematurely will be invited to engage in a telephone interview. Experiences of receiving their diagnosis of MUS, their experience of treatment, opinions relating to their CBT referral and ultimately why they chose not to attend appointments will be explored. This research aims to understand the reasons why individuals with MUS may not attend CBT to understand this process better and make improvements to services for this group of individuals in the future. The researcher is a member of staff working as a support worker at LYPFT within Liaison Psychiatry. This project will be sponsored by the University of Manchester and will be written up as a postgraduate dissertation project for an MSc in Clinical and Health Psychology.REC name
North West - Greater Manchester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
19/NW/0444
Date of REC Opinion
15 Aug 2019
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion