Seeking Safety group intervention for complex post-traumatic stress disorder: a feasibility randomised controlled trial

Research Team

• Professor Martin Webber

Co-Investigators

• Dr Simon Hamilton, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Rosemary Greenwood, University of Leicester
• Professor Helen Weatherly, Centre for Health Economics, University of York
• Dr Tracey Smith, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Dr Luise Marino, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Clive Baker, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Susannah Lawrence, South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust

Project Summary

Background

Many people suffering from severe stress after a traumatic experience try to cope by using alcohol, drugs, or engaging in other risky behaviours which may affect their mental health. To be accepted onto a waiting list for treatment such as talking therapy, people need to have stopped misusing alcohol and drugs. Due to their traumatic past some people feel unable to do this, leaving them unable to make progress towards recovery.

There is a lack of effective treatments for people with combined problems of complex post-traumatic stress disorder and substance use. However, a group programme - Seeking Safety - has been developed in the United States, where it has been effective in tackling trauma and substance use. In the UK it has been piloted in the NHS with some promising outcomes, but more research is needed especially around the longer-term coping skills which Seeking Safety may provide.

Design and Methods

This will be a small study (a randomised controlled trial) in one Mental Health NHS Trust to test the feasibility of a larger study across many locations. This study will recruit 56 diverse people with complex trauma and substance use, or other coping behaviours, from community mental health teams or psychology waiting lists. People will be randomly chosen to receive Seeking Safety or continue with normal care. Those receiving normal care will be offered Seeking Safety at the end of the study.

Participants in both groups will be interviewed at the beginning of the study, at the end of Seeking Safety groups (six months later); and six months following this. They will be asked about their mental health, substance use, quality of life and use of health and social care services. The responses from both groups will be compared.

We will also interview staff and participants about how taking part in the study made them feel to see if anything needs to change for a larger study.

Patient and public involvement

Service users and healthcare professionals have helped to design this study. This involvement will continue throughout the study with a group of people with lived experience of complex trauma advising the research team on how best to recruit participants, collect data and interpret the findings. This group will meet five times throughout the project.

Dissemination 

The findings will be shared in an academic paper and a summary for practitioners and people who use NHS services. We will also share the findings online in a free event and videos.

For more information (please contact)

Professor Martin Webber, Director of the Mental Health Social Care Research Centre, School for Business and Society, University of York, York, UK.