Parent-led treatments for anxiety disorders in children (P-TAC) V1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Feasibility study for an RCT examining the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of online parent-guided CBT for child anxiety disorders
IRAS ID
251713
Contact name
Cathy Creswell
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Reading
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, 31 days
Research summary
More than a quarter of the general population have an anxiety disorder at some point during their life, and half of these people will be first affected by age 11. Children with anxiety disorders are more likely than their peers to experience ongoing anxiety, other mental health problems and impaired quality of life in adulthood. Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for children with anxiety disorders works well, but is typically lengthy and costly to deliver, and very few affected children access this treatment. We have developed a briefer version of the traditional treatment that involves working with parents, rather than directly with the child. We have found that this parent-guided approach has similar outcomes to the traditional approach, but with cost savings. However, online delivery could improve treatment efficiency further by substantially reducing the amount of therapist contact time required. We have therefore worked in collaboration with families, NHS clinicians and a tech-company to co-design an online version of our parent-guided treatment for child anxiety disorders called OSI (Online Support and Intervention for child anxiety). Adoption of OSI across NHS child and adolescent mental health services could enable more children with anxiety disorders to access evidence-based support in a timely fashion, and thereby have a substantial impact on their lives, their families and broader society.
This study will establish the feasibility of a full randomised controlled trial (RCT) to compare this new online treatment to the existing face-to-face parent-guided treatment, targeting children aged 7-12 years old with a primary diagnosis of an anxiety disorder. After an initial assessment at the AnDY Research Clinic at the University of Reading, parents will take part in up to 8 weekly treatment sessions. Families will also take part in a post-treatment assessment. Child outcomes, parent expectations and experiences and health economic factors will be assessed.
REC name
East Midlands - Nottingham 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/EM/0265
Date of REC Opinion
31 Oct 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion