Cognitive Remediation Therapy

For people who have experienced psychosis: a rural and urban implementation trial

About the project

Many people with psychosis experience difficulties with their cognition, which can include difficulty concentrating on tasks and remembering things, as well as planning and organising.

Cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) helps by teaching strategies for problem solving, remembering and planning and then practising them in structured activities outside of the therapy room. Our study focuses on implementing CRT in diverse Australian clinical settings to evaluate its impact.

What are we doing?

We are delivering a CRT program called CIRCuiTS to people in the research sites who have experienced psychosis. We're using the RE-AIM framework to meticulously assess the reach, efficacy, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of CRT at each site. This rigorous evaluation will help us understand how CRT can be effectively integrated into different types of mental health services.

The study also includes a cost-benefit analysis at each site. By comparing results, we aim to provide valuable insights into the cost implications for healthcare organizations, ensuring CRT is both effective and economically viable.

What is CIRCuiTS?

CIRCuiTS™ is a psychological therapy for improving thinking skills such as concentration, planning and memory. Its effectiveness and uniqueness lies in targeting clients' metacognition and promoting strategy use to aid the transfer of cognitive skills to everyday life.

Created in the United Kingdom by researchers at Kings College London. Excitingly, we now have an Australian version of the CIRCuiTS program!

Screenshot of the CIRCuiTS program

Members of the research and clinical teams reviewed the original CIRCuiTS for language and images that could be Australianised – the money for example – and we hope the new version will help people connect better with the content when it is familiar to them.

Who is involved?

Project sites include the mental health services at Western NSW Local Health District, Illawarra Shoalhaven Local Health District, South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, and Metro South Addiction and Mental Health Service in Logan, Queensland.

Each site will tailor CRT delivery to meet local needs and operational requirements. We're committed to a co-design process, involving staff and leadership at each site to create a CRT model that aligns with patient, workforce, and operational needs. This ensures the therapy is seamlessly integrated into existing service provisions.

This project is funded by the Australian Government (Grant number - MRFFART000036)