Group interpersonal therapy for depression (StrongMinds)

Domain V · Systemic, relational, group & community · Verdeli, Clougherty, Weissman · 2003 · Uganda

What it is

Group interpersonal therapy (IPT-G) is a time-limited, manualised group form of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (Klerman and Weissman) simplified so that trained, supervised non-specialists can deliver it. The Ugandan version was tested in a cluster RCT in rural south-western Uganda (Bolton, Bass,…

Format

• Format. 6–10 members per group (WHO); 8–10 in Uganda, recruiting until at least 8 had enrolled. Sessions last about 90 minutes (up to 2 hours if more than 10 members). Groups are usually single-sex; Uganda used strictly sex-segregated groups, led by a facilitator of the same sex, and excluded age…
• Dose versions. WHO standard: 1 individual pre-group session + 8 group sessions (Session 1 initial phase, Sessions 2–7 middle phase, Session 8 termination). WHO 12-session variant: 9 middle-phase and 2 termination sessions. Uganda 2002 trial (IPT-G-U): 16 weekly 90-minute group sessions (dropout…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Not a licensed programme in the sense of MST or Triple P: the WHO manual is published under a Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 IGO) licence, and WHO asks for trained, supervised facilitators rather than formal certification; new facilitators should be supervised through at least three complete groups by supervisors with mental health training. StrongMinds uses its own standardised IPT-G training curriculum and…

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• How do you and the practitioner understand what is happening, in spiritual or cultural terms? Is that a source of comfort, worry, or both?
• Does it use a device, heat, cold, water or a physical procedure? Has a medical professional checked that it is safe for you?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• members who stay silent; do not force them.
• promising cures or material help the programme cannot give.
• one member's story taking all the time; keep turns balanced.
• advice that is pressuring or moralising; the member keeps the choice.
• events the person minimises; the onset often clusters with a loss or conflict.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.