Grant: Operating Grant

Anxiety disorders are the most common mental disorders in community settings, and they are associated with significant psychological distress, functional and social impairment. Although pharmacological and psychological treatments for anxiety and depression have existed for several years now, only a minority of anxiety disorder sufferers are treated according to guidelines. Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is the most consistently efficacious psychological treatment for anxiety disorders, but implementation of CBT in primary care is challenging due to limited resources. Recent studies indicate that group CBT for multiple anxiety disorders could be a promising alternative to individual CBT in primary care. The aim of the study is to examine the effectiveness of group CBT for anxiety disorders as a complement to usual care by family physicians. The clinical trial will be conducted in four Health and Social Services Centers in the province of Québec (i.e. Sherbrooke, Montérégie, Laval and Québec). Patients will be French-speaking adults with anxiety disorders, and they will be randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions: a) Transdiagnostic group CBT (12 weekly 2-hr sessions), b) Support group (12 weekly 2-hr sessions), c) usual care. The transdiagnostic group CBT will be offered as a differed intervention to participants in groups (b) and (c) after the 12-month follow up. A qualitative study comprising individual semi-structured interviews with patients and therapists will be conducted to gain a deeper understanding of results. The primary study results will include improvement on a questionnaire on anxiety symptoms and a clinical assessment. The evaluation of group transdiagnostic CBT in the real world will provide invaluable information to decision makers, health care managers, clinicians and patients. Widespread implementation of group CBT could lead to better outcomes for a large number of patients living with anxiety.