(PS3-C56) Psychosocial Intervention Utilization in Focused Integrated Team-based Treatment Program for Bipolar Disorder (FITT-BD): Baseline Depression Symptoms and Demographic Characteristics

Background: The Focused Integrated Team-based Treatment Program for Bipolar Disorder (FITT-BD) is an innovative treatment program that includes three core approaches: stepped care, collaborative care, and learning healthcare systems. Patients are assigned personalized skills-based interventions to meet self-identified goals. We examined the frequency with which cognitive behavioral treatment (CBT)-based interventions (i.e., cognitive restructuring, behavioral activation, mood monitoring, and psychoeducation) were assigned in FITT-BD and to whom (i.e., the baseline demographic and symptomatic characteristics).

Method: We included FITT-BD patients with complete data (N=38), or the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, assessing depressive symptoms, and a background history form. FITT-BD clinicians collaboratively develop a treatment plan with patients or identify personalized interventions for each treatment goal. Patients were female (50%), White (86.6%), non-Hispanic (97.4%) and employed (50%), with an average age of 36.7 years (SD=14.2).

Results: Over 57% of patients were assigned to cognitive restructuring, 23.7% to behavioral activation, 71.1.%  to mood monitoring and 68.4%  to psychoeducation interventions. Rates of assignment to CBT-based interventions did not significantly differ based on severity of depressive symptoms, but there was a trend for patients assigned to cognitive restructuring (p=0.08) to be more depressed. Patients assigned to mood monitoring tended to be older and unemployed (p=0.07 and p=0.07, respectively).

Conclusion: The most assigned CBT-based interventions were cognitive restructuring and mood monitoring in the FITT-BD program. These preliminarily data suggest that symptomatic and demographic factors could contribute to intervention selection. Future research is needed to examine these associations to better understand how to personalize treatments for individuals with bipolar disorder.