2023 Rainmaker Start up: The INTEGRATE program: A feasibility implementation trial of a manualised group-based therapeutic intervention to improve relational functioning in individuals with complex traumatic stress disorder (CTSD)

There is increasing awareness that adaption of existing PSTD treatment approaches for CTSD has had mixed results for individuals who have experienced interpersonal traumas and childhood adversity; often there is a demonstrated attenuation of PTSD symptoms, yet the challenges related to difficulties with DSO remain (Karatzias et al., 2016). There is an internationally recognised need to develop evidence-based clinical interventions that focus on the emotional-, interpersonal-, and self-, dysregulations involved in DSO, and are purpose-built to improve functioning (DSO; Ford & Courtois, 2020). To date, treatments for the symptoms of DSO have leveraged those more commonly used for personality disorder, such as Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT). DBT is resource intensive, often delivered through extensive one to one therapy over an extended period (up to 2 years) and is not ‘purpose built’ for DSO arising from trauma experiences. It is thus less efficient and less effective than the proposed INTEGRATE program (de Boer et al., 2021; Ford & Courtois, 2020; Karatzias et al., 2019). INTEGRATE is a novel 12-week group-based therapeutic intervention that has been developed in response to this identified need. Importantly, INTEGRATE has been carefully designed to situate as complementary to existing best-practice approaches for treatment of PTSD. The purpose of this study is to evaluate implementation feasibility of INTEGRATE with a community-based sample in collaboration with a NT Health service, the Perinatal Mental Health Consultation Service (PMHCS).