A Case Series Examining PTSD and Depression Symptom Reductions Over the Course of a 2-Week Virtual Intensive PTSD Treatment Program for Veterans

Clinical Impact Statement The present case series suggests that delivering posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) treatments via telehealth twice per day for 2 consecutive weeks can reduce PTSD and depression symptom severity. Telehealth can greatly expand the reach of these intensive PTSD treatment programs, which may be particularly relevant for individuals who would be unable to travel to treatment sites. When offering intensive PTSD treatment virtually, clinicians are strongly encouraged to follow the American Psychological Association's telehealth best practice guidelines for establishing safety and determining the patients' homes provide a safe and feasible environment for participating in treatment. Objective: Evidence-based treatments for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can be effectively delivered over telehealth. There are, however, no studies that examine the effectiveness of delivering evidence-based treatments for PTSD in an intensive format via telehealth. Telehealth may be well-suited as a delivery modality because it may address barriers specific to intensive treatments. Method: To address this gap, we report on a case series of ten consecutively enrolled veterans (60% male; mean age 42.3, SD = 6.3) who participated in a virtual 2-week, cognitive processing therapy (CPT)-based intensive program. Results: All (100%) participants completed treatment and reported large reductions in PTSD and depression symptoms pre- to posttreatment (Hedge's g(ws) = 2.83 and g(ws) = 1.97, respectively), pre- to 3-month follow-up (Hedge's g(ws) = .99 and g(ws) = 1.24, respectively), as well as very high satisfaction. Conclusions: Results of this case series suggest that evidence-based treatments for PTSD can be effectively delivered in intensive formats over telehealth and lay the foundation for more rigorously designed and larger scale research comparing virtual to in-person delivered intensive PTSD treatments.