EMDR and CBT for Cancer Patients: Comparative Study of Effects on PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression

This pilot study examined the efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment compared with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in oncology patients in the follow-up phase of the disease. The secondary aim of this study was to assess whether EMDR treatment has a different impact on PTSD in the active treatment or during the followup stages of disease. Twenty-one patients in follow-up care were randomly assigned to EMDR or CBT groups, and 10 patients in the active treatment phase were assigned to EMDR group. The Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) and Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) were used to assess PTSD at pretreatment and 1 month posttreatment. Anxiety, depression, and psychophysiological symptoms were also evaluated. For cancer patients in the follow-up stage, the absence of PTSD after the treatment was associated with a significantly higher likelihood of receiving EMDR rather than CBT. EMDR was significantly more effective than CBT in reducing scores on the IES-R and the CAPS intrusive symptom subscale, whereas anxiety and depression improved equally in both treatment groups. Furthermore, EMDR showed the same efficacy both in the active cancer treatment and during the follow-up of the disease

Sindrome del burn-out: valutazione del rischio e prevenzione in un’èquipe di infermieri e personale ausiliario operanti in Cure Palliative

The burnout syndrome is a form of response to a chronic work-related distress. It affects people working in the so-called “helping professions”, in healthcare, and features a “multidimensional” etiopathogenesis. Its onset is characterised by the appearance of three psychological components, namely, emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and a reduced sense of personal accomplishment, associated with a constellation of psychosomatic and behavioural symptoms. The paper describes a screening project aimed at assessing the risk of burnout in a group of nurses and auxiliary staff working in a palliative care ward, examining the links with the personality trait of alexithymia and identifying any possible prevention criteria. The project employs the Maslach Burnout Inventory and Toronto Alexithymia Scale. Out of 83 group members, 79 (95%) participated in the study project, which revealed low levels of burnout – compared to the average Italian Normative Sample – and low levels of alexithymia as well. The risk of burnout appeared highest among the group members who were of Italian nationality, single, structured workers and dedicated to palliative care alone, among nurses and staff members with a medium-to-low self-assessment of their professional skills. There were no significant gender-based differences. The complex picture of the syndrome, therefore, involves cognitive and behavioural, emotional and subjective value-based aspects, as well as aspects relating to the work organization and environment, with respect to which the unanimously shared criteria for effective risk monitoring and prevention are provided

EMDR and CBT for cancer patients: Comparative study of effects on PTSD, anxiety and depression

This pilot study examined the efficacy of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) treatment compared with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in treating posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in oncology patients in the follow-up phase of the disease. The secondary aim of this study was to assess whether EMDR treatment has a different impact on PTSD in the active treatment or during the followup stages of disease. Twenty-one patients in follow-up care were randomly assigned to EMDR or CBT groups, and 10 patients in the active treatment phase were assigned to EMDR group. The Impact of Event Scale???Revised (IES-R) and Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS) were used to assess PTSD at pretreatment and 1 month posttreatment. Anxiety, depression, and psychophysiological symptoms were also evaluated. For cancer patients in the follow-up stage, the absence of PTSD after the treatment was associated with a significantly higher likelihood of receiving EMDR rather than CBT. EMDR was significantly more effective than CBT in reducing scores on the IES-R and the CAPS intrusive symptom subscale, whereas anxiety and depression improved equally in both treatment groups. Furthermore, EMDR showed the same efficacy both in the active cancer treatment and during the follow-up of the disease