The results of new study, published in JMIR, show that people experiencing severe suicidal thoughts can engage successfully with anonymous online treatment.
The study was led by Dr Bregje van Spijker from the Australian National University, and included a team of researchers from the Black Dog Institute and VU University Amsterdam and tested the effectiveness of an anonymous online self-help program, Living with Deadly Thoughts.
The study involved 418 Australian adults and was adapted from a Dutch online self-help program using principles of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy.
“Participants who completed more of the modules did better than the control group, so sticking with the online treatment appears to be important. Those with less severe suicidal ideation also showed greater improvements,” Dr van Spijker said.
“The next steps will be to identify the support people need in order to be able to engage more effectively with online treatment, and whether online and other e-health interventions can support recovery following a suicide attempt.”