IPC for University Counseling Centers

Overview

Interpersonal Counseling (IPC) is brief, structured modification of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT). IPC was developed as a brief triage manual to treat depression in primary care, family practice and non-mental health programs, and work and educational settings. College and university students are at the age where first episodes of depression, bipolar disorder, or psychosis may occur. IPC is relevant for this population as many university students' distress are related to profound life changes, role transitions, loneliness and social/cultural isolation, which are focuses of treatment in IPC. While there is considerable evidence for the efficacy of IPT and IPC, this adaptation for university students has not yet been studied. The investigators propose to administer IPC to across several college campuses, and to recruit 20 participants at each counseling center. Participants will receive 3-6 one-hour therapy sessions, and will complete self-report measures of depression, psychosocial functioning, college adjustment, and treatment satisfaction. IPC has the potential to reduce depressive symptoms and prevent presenting symptoms from worsening. For these reasons, developing and testing a brief, yet comprehensive psychosocial intervention for distressed college students has tremendous importance.

Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) is a short term, evidence-based treatment approach that has shown benefits in treating major depressive disorder as well as other psychiatric conditions. IPT focuses on the patient's current life events, including social and interpersonal functioning, as a means of understanding and treating maladaptive symptoms. Interpersonal Counseling (IPC) is a modification of the Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) protocol. Subsequently, IPC was developed as a brief intervention for depression to be used in primary care, family practice and non-mental health programs, educational and work settings. IPC is a treatment approach ready for dissemination and implementation by non-mental health workers who have direct contact with individuals at risk for depression and other pathologies. IPC has been used for efficient training, for preventative and screening purposes in doctor's offices, schools, community based centers and organizations. IPC synthesizes the fundamental principles of IPT into 3-6 sessions. Individuals receiving IPC are initially assessed for symptoms of pathology, and then encouraged to identify interpersonal problem areas which may be contributing to their presenting symptoms. The key principles and techniques standard to IPT are also applied in IPC, so that the protocol can act not only as an assessment tool, but also as a brief intervention. After identifying an interpersonal problem area, the IPC clinician works with the client to mobilize social support and rehearse more effective communication strategies. Once the IPC protocol is completed, clinical decisions can be made regarding clients' need for follow-up psychotherapy or alternative referrals. Over the last decade, college and university counseling centers are reporting that students are seeking psychiatric services under more distress and with more severe disorders. College-age students are generally at increased risk for experiencing psychopathology; they are at the age where first episodes of depression, bipolar disorder, or psychosis often occur. Secondly, college students are often away from their social and family networks for the first time, and may experience less instrumental social support when experiencing periods of psychological distress. To date, most college counseling centers conduct psychological assessments of students presenting for services and provide supportive counseling, often for a finite number of sessions due to the heavy volume of student referrals. For these reasons, it is important to have a brief, yet comprehensive protocol for screening and intervening with distressed college students. Such protocols should be structured and accessible to implementation by a range of professionals: clinical social workers or psychologists, practicum students and interns training in these fields. IPC, a systematic, brief evaluation, support and triage approach may help university counseling centers in both their treatment and intervention.