Development and Evaluation of Culturally Adapted CBT to Improve Community Mental Health Services for Canadians of South Asian Origin - Final Report 2023

Phase 1: Five themes were identified from the analysis: Awareness and preparation: matters that impact the individual’s cognizance of therapy and mental illness Access and delivery of care: SA Canadians’ perception of barriers, facilitators and access to treatment Assessment and engagement: experiences of receiving helpful treatment Adjustments to therapy: modifications and suggestions to standard CBT Ideology and ambiguity: racism, immigration, discrimination and other socio-political factors that affect mental health and access to care. Phase 2: The CaCBT group scored lower than standard CBT on all symptom measures. The CaCBT group exhibited significantly greater levels of engagement and satisfaction than the standard CBT group, as evidenced by VSSS and WAI results. South Asians born in Canada showed greater reduction in depressive symptoms (approaching statistical significance) than those born outside of Canada, indicating that CaCBT may be more widely accepted among those born in Canada. The study had a high recruitment response and retention rate, demonstrating the feasibility of CaCBT. Phase 3: There was significant increase in knowledge of both multicultural counselling skills and cultural adaptation after training. There was a significant increase in Southampton Adaptation Framework knowledge after training, with a 37% average normalized gain in knowledge Average satisfaction post-training was 91.66%.