| Popis: |
Chronic health conditions are the leading cause of disability, reduced quality of life, and death. For 20 percent of these patients, clinical anxiety and depression exacerbate existing disease. Despite the high prevalence of comorbidity, existing treatments and service delivery approaches largely reflect fragmented, disease-specific care. Traditional psychological interventions are often unfeasible or unappealing. Transdiagnostic, process-based, and flexibly delivered, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) can meet the heterogeneous needs and treatment preferences of patients with physical, mental health, behavioral, and co-occurring difficulties. ACT directly addresses behavioral avoidance, a common problem in behavioral medicine. It attends to the values and goals of patients and teaches skills to flexibly pursue values despite obstacles, including those presented by serious chronic disease. ACT has been effectively implemented in hospital settings and primary care and specialty care clinics. A rapidly evolving literature supports the preliminary feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of brief ACT treatments, including those in medical care settings. This therapy has been associated with improved medical, mental health, and behavioral outcomes, as well as overall functioning and quality of life. As medicine increasingly recognizes the importance of mental health, well-being, and health behavior change, ACT’s transdiagnostic, process-based approach and flexible delivery options ideally position it to address behavioral health care needs in diverse medical populations. |
