Feedback on patients’ progress in therapy narrows the gap between more or less effective therapists

What is it about?

Some therapists are more effective than others, which means that patients’ treatment outcomes partly depend on how well therapists perform – the so-called therapist effect. In this study we wanted to find out whether providing therapists with feedback on patients’ progress in therapy can influence this therapist variability. To provide feedback to therapists, patients complete a questionnaire at each therapy session covering questions about their symptoms and level of functioning. This questionnaire is evaluated and then provides therapists with important information about whether their patients’ symptoms are improving or deteriorating. The idea is that therapists could use this information to adjust treatment and thus positively influence the therapeutic process. To investigate the influence of progress feedback on the therapist effect, we used data from 4,549 participants and 131 therapists across 6 major clinical trials.

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Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Our findings show that “who the therapist is” matters less in healthcare settings that apply feedback-informed treatment, since progress feedback improves outcomes and reduces the risk of being treated by a less effective therapist.

Perspectives