PS66 Community-based psychological therapy for dermatology patients: real-life experiences

Abstract

The NHS Talking Therapies programme offers free, ­evidence-based psychological interventions to adults who are experiencing mild-to-moderate common mental health difficulties in England. Since 2017, some Talking Therapy services (referred to as ‘TT-LTC’) have been commissioned to offer talking therapies for patients who live with long-term conditions, such as skin disease. A national survey conducted by the BAD found that 14% of dermatology patients reported having a psychological condition that exacerbated their skin disease, 17% indicated a need for psychological support to manage distress secondary to their skin condition, and 85% reported that the psychosocial impact of their skin disease constituted a major component of their illness. We present three case studies of patients with chronic dermatological conditions who had completed psychological treatment provided by a local NHS Talking Therapies service. Following ethics approval, a pool of patients with skin conditions were identified from the local Talking Therapies service’s electronic patient record and approached to elicit their interest in participating in a short interview. Three patients opted in to the study. Their experiences of therapy and the impact it had on their health, wellbeing and skin condition were explored in a semistructured 1-h clinical interview, with one of the authors. The interview comprised of a number of questions exploring the following areas: previous history of mental health concerns, the impact of the skin condition on the patient’s life and functioning, the patient’s experience of therapy, and the impact of this on symptoms and self-­management of the skin condition. Although NHS Talking Therapies is widely known, as far as we are aware, this is the first case series of real-life experiences of patients who have accessed their services. Recommendations for future research are presented.