On the emerald island of the Dodecanese, Rhodes, between May 25 and 28, the 31st Panhellenic Congress of Psychiatry, which is organised every year by the Greek Psychiatry Society, took place. Distinguished mental health scientists from Greece, Cyprus, but also from the international arena participated as speakers in the conference.
Representing CUT, a research team, which consisted of PhD candidate Ms. Anna Hatziioannou, head Dr. Maria Karanikola, Associate Professor of Nursing Mental Health, Associate Professor Ms. Euridikis Papastavrou and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry Mr. Andreas Chatzittofis received the 2nd published announcement prize for the research paper entitled “Effectiveness of an educational intervention of disease self-management skills in people with bipolar disorder: Results of the MoB study”.
The MoB study was completed as part of the doctoral studies of Mrs. Anna Hatziioannou, who is also the main researcher of this study. The MoB study concerns a formative exploratory mixed methods study with 3 phases, which combines (a) the investigation based on qualitative methodology of the educational needs of people with bipolar disorder and their relatives (Phase I) with the aim of formulation of a relevant educational intervention, b) the formulation of the educational intervention based on the needs assessed in Phase I, the training manual for Colom & Vieta bipolar disorder and cognitive-behavioral therapy techniques (Phase II),
It is noted that the intervention combines in-person training sessions and the use of an online information platform, which was also developed in Phase II of the study for the purposes of the training intervention.
In terms of the effectiveness of the intervention, the training was shown to be useful for a wide range of clinical parameters, such as improving quality of life, improving depressive symptoms, improving knowledge about bipolar disorder, improving beliefs about medication and, by extension, correct application. and improving frequency of alcohol use.
As for the originality of the study, its methodological approach itself and in particular the element of the previous thorough investigation of the educational needs of the target population with the aim of shaping and adapting the educational intervention constitutes the strongest point of originality of the study. In addition to the fact that this element is absent from corresponding educational interventions to strengthen the self-management skills of people with bipolar disorder in the international literature, the non-utilization of formative research in the context of the design of educational or other interventions is the most frequent limitation found in intervention studies, and which the awarded study effectively covers.
At the same time, an element of originality of the award-winning study is the complex nature of the intervention, which was structured on the basis of the existing educational model of Colom & Vieta (2009), but adapted to the emerging needs from the qualitative part of the study and enriched with self-management exercises based on the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
Also, an element of originality, but at the same time a tangible contribution of the study, is the online platform www.mob.com.cy which was designed in the context of the wider research program. The importance of the creation of the platform does not only concern the educational material itself that the platform includes as a valid source of information, but it also concerns the fact that the study leaves behind a tangible deliverable, which can function as a complementary educational tool in the hands of mental health professionals and a valuable resource for the self-help groups created by this study.
In fact, this last element highlights the social contribution of the award-winning study, since it leaves a legacy through the creation of a support mechanism for people with bipolar disorder, something that was completely absent from the Cypriot and Greek reality.
For more information about the awarded study you can visit the study’s website www.mob.com.cy.
For more information about the 31st Panhellenic Psychiatry Congress and the awards of the Hellenic Psychiatric Society, please visit the website of the society at the E-POSTERS Award in the context of the 31st Panhellenic Congress of Psychiatry, of the Greek Psychiatry Society – Greek Psychiatric Society (psych.gr)
Ms. Anna Hatziioannou is a Mental Health Nurse-Psychotherapist, a graduate of the Master’s programme in Advanced Nursing and Health Care, majoring in “Advanced Nursing and Mental Health Care”, offered by the Department of Nursing of CUT, and a PhD candidate in the same Department.
Source: Cyprus University of Technology | News (https://rb.gy/rv5hi)\