Hi Yonatan. Thanks for the questions. I wouldn’t quite say we solved it, but we have found a solution that has had tremendous results in Uganda and Zambia. There are probably a few reasons for this. Most of the communities we work in are very close-knit and interpersonal, so the group talk therapy model of IPT-G works well. Additionally, around 85% of women in sub-Saharan Africa don’t have access to quality mental health care. There is a huge treatment gap, for instance, Uganda has approximately 30 trained psychiatrists serving a population of 45M, so we are also filling a dire need by providing these free services using lay community health workers. The symptoms of depression are still not commonly known in Uganda and Zambia, and many people think they are just fatigued, sick, or just unmotivated/lazy, so discovering that there is a way to treat their symptoms and that there are other people experiencing this too is life-changing. Many women in therapy groups form a bond and continue to meet long after therapy ends. They now have a new support system and are no longer isolated. All of these factors play a role in our success.
The program model can be replicated in other geographical locations, and IPT has been shown to work well cross-culturally. We are currently exploring an American pilot where the need is also extreme in underserved BIPOC communities. Our pilot is happening in the Newark, NJ area just outside of NYC. That said, we have to do quite a bit of work to determine how western preferences fit into this, and we are collecting data from some initial groups now.
StrongMinds therapy model is based on an RCT from 2002 in Uganda. It has shown to be a highly effective way to reach women in underserved and remote areas that would otherwise not have access to mental health treatment options.
Hi Yonatan. Thanks for the questions. I wouldn’t quite say we solved it, but we have found a solution that has had tremendous results in Uganda and Zambia. There are probably a few reasons for this. Most of the communities we work in are very close-knit and interpersonal, so the group talk therapy model of IPT-G works well. Additionally, around 85% of women in sub-Saharan Africa don’t have access to quality mental health care. There is a huge treatment gap, for instance, Uganda has approximately 30 trained psychiatrists serving a population of 45M, so we are also filling a dire need by providing these free services using lay community health workers. The symptoms of depression are still not commonly known in Uganda and Zambia, and many people think they are just fatigued, sick, or just unmotivated/lazy, so discovering that there is a way to treat their symptoms and that there are other people experiencing this too is life-changing. Many women in therapy groups form a bond and continue to meet long after therapy ends. They now have a new support system and are no longer isolated. All of these factors play a role in our success.
The program model can be replicated in other geographical locations, and IPT has been shown to work well cross-culturally. We are currently exploring an American pilot where the need is also extreme in underserved BIPOC communities. Our pilot is happening in the Newark, NJ area just outside of NYC. That said, we have to do quite a bit of work to determine how western preferences fit into this, and we are collecting data from some initial groups now.
StrongMinds therapy model is based on an RCT from 2002 in Uganda. It has shown to be a highly effective way to reach women in underserved and remote areas that would otherwise not have access to mental health treatment options.