I-CARE: A Pilot Study of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy(CBT) for Mood and Anxiety Disorders

I-CARE: A Pilot Study of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy(CBT) for Mood and Anxiety Disorders

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if CBT(Cognitive Behavioural Therapy)-MyOWL(Optimizing Wellness through Literature) is feasible, leads to better patient retention, and has high acceptability by youth psychiatric outpatients with mood and/or anxiety disorder aged 14-19. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Primary Objective (feasibility): To determine whether a clinically meaningful proportion of youth complete a full course of CBT-MyOWL / CBT-as-usual.

Primary Objective (acceptability): To determine whether the CBT-MyOWL and CBT-as-usual interventions delivered are acceptable to youth participants.

Secondary Objectives:

1. To determine whether CBT-MyOWL enhances time of retention compared to CBT-as-usual.
2. To determine whether youth who receive CBT-MyOWL have improved scores on all of the following over the course of treatment and endpoint compared to youth who receive CBT-as usual: i) depression and anxiety ii) suicidal ideation, iii) self-harm, and iv) coping and emotional resiliency.

Participants will:

Participate in 12 sessions of either CBT-MyOWL or CBT-as-usual (active control) Completes 4-5 questionnaires at sessions 3,6,9,12 Complete the acceptability and exit interview at session 12

Inclusion Criteria:

• Aged 14-19
• Primary diagnosis of a mood disorder or an anxiety disorder
• Ability to understand written and spoken English and to read a novel
• Treating physician considers CBT as indicated for the patient

Exclusion Criteria:

• Patients already participating in active CBT therapy or recently completed CBT treatment (within the past 3 months)
• Active psychosis or mania