Metacognitive training light: adjusted, short-term, multi-professional metacognitive training for patients with psychotic symptoms in psychiatric care.

Abstract

Aimed at simplifying treatment access for patients experiencing psychosis and cognitive impairments, language barriers or short in-hospital stays, we developed metacognitive training light (MCT-Light). This exploratory proof-of-concept study investigated to what extent MCT-Light is feasible, accepted and helps improve patients' psychotic symptoms. We recruited 45 inpatients with psychotic and cognitive symptoms during their current stay, who were enrolled in MCT-Light, and assessed them before their first and after their third session. As primary endpoint we explored changes in the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) positive factor. Secondary analyses included (1) feasibility of integrating MCT-Light into treatment plans, (2) acceptability and (3) potential efficacy of MCT-Light towards improving Clinical Global Impression (CGI) and Beck Cognitive Insight Scale (BCIS) scores. Among the 29 completers, we observed significant improvements for the primary endpoint (r = .829, p < .0001) and secondary exploratory endpoints (CGI: r = .767, p < .0001; BCIS: d = -.458, p = .020), and MCT-light was generally well accepted. Its implementation might help close gaps in healthcare provision for patients challenged with the aforementioned barriers, by providing a feasible alternative to conventional MCT. Future randomized trials could employ long-term follow-ups to assess the stability of MCT-Light's effects.