Expert international trauma clinicians’ views on the definition, composition and delivery of reintegration interventions for complex PTSD

Summary & key facts

Researchers interviewed 16 international trauma experts to learn what the final phase of treatment for complex post-traumatic stress disorder, called reintegration, should be. The experts had different ideas about what reintegration includes, but they agreed on the main principles for how it should be delivered. The study says we still need more research to reach a clear definition, to test whether reintegration helps people, and to find ways to measure it.

Key facts:

• The team spoke to 16 leading clinical and academic experts, each with at least ten years of experience treating complex PTSD.
• Complex PTSD means a person has the usual PTSD symptoms plus extra problems with managing emotions, a damaged sense of self, and difficulty in relationships.
• Reintegration is described as the third and final phase in a commonly used three-step treatment plan that follows stabilisation and trauma memory processing.
• Experts disagreed a lot about the exact definition and the specific components that should make up reintegration.
• Despite disagreement about content, experts generally agreed on key principles for how reintegration should be delivered in therapy.
• The authors conclude that there is not yet a clear consensus and that more research is needed to define reintegration, to test its value, and to develop ways to measure it.

Abstract

The results of this study lay the foundation for a framework of what reintegration is and how it can be used in, but also highlight the need for more research to be conducted on the role of reintegration in the treatment of CPTSD. Consensus for the definition and composition of reintegration is still yet to be reached. Possible measures for evaluating reintegration should also be explored in the future.

Topics

Child Abuse and Trauma Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Research Traumatic Brain Injury Research

Categories

Clinical Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Computer science Foundation (evidence) Law Medicine Political science Programming language Psychiatry Psychological intervention Psychology Psychotherapist Qualitative research Set (abstract data type) Social science Sociology Thematic analysis

Conditions & symptoms

PTSD Feeling disconnected from others Sadness or low mood