IPC for University Counseling Centers

Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) is a short term, evidence-based treatment approach that has shown benefits in treating major depressive disorder as well as other psychiatric conditions. IPT focuses on the patient's current life events, including social and interpersonal functioning, as a means of understanding and treating maladaptive symptoms. Interpersonal Counseling (IPC) is a modification of the Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) protocol. Subsequently, IPC was developed as a brief intervention for depression to be used in primary care, family practice and non-mental health programs, educational and work settings. IPC is a treatment approach ready for dissemination and implementation by non-mental health workers who have direct contact with individuals at risk for depression and other pathologies. IPC has been used for efficient training, for preventative and screening purposes in doctor's offices, schools, community based centers and organizations.

IPC synthesizes the fundamental principles of IPT into 3-6 sessions. Individuals receiving IPC are initially assessed for symptoms of pathology, and then encouraged to identify interpersonal problem areas which may be contributing to their presenting symptoms. The key principles and techniques standard to IPT are also applied in IPC, so that the protocol can act not only as an assessment tool, but also as a brief intervention. After identifying an interpersonal problem area, the IPC clinician works with the client to mobilize social support and rehearse more effective communication strategies. Once the IPC protocol is completed, clinical decisions can be made regarding clients' need for follow-up psychotherapy or alternative referrals.

Over the last decade, college and university counseling centers are reporting that students are seeking psychiatric services under more distress and with more severe disorders. College-age students are generally at increased risk for experiencing psychopathology; they are at the age where first episodes of depression, bipolar disorder, or psychosis often occur. Secondly, college students are often away from their social and family networks for the first time, and may experience less instrumental social support when experiencing periods of psychological distress. To date, most college counseling centers conduct psychological assessments of students presenting for services and provide supportive counseling, often for a finite number of sessions due to the heavy volume of student referrals. For these reasons, it is important to have a brief, yet comprehensive protocol for screening and intervening with distressed college students. Such protocols should be structured and accessible to implementation by a range of professionals: clinical social workers or psychologists, practicum students and interns training in these fields. IPC, a systematic, brief evaluation, support and triage approach may help university counseling centers in both their treatment and intervention.

Inclusion criteria

• 18-40 years old
• Currently receiving counseling at one of the study locations
• Adjustment disorder with depressed mood or mild to moderate depression which correlates with a Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) score of 5-14.

Exclusion criteria

• Pregnancy.
• Non-English speaking
• Poses a significant risk for dangerousness to self or others, or suffers from a concomitant medical or psychiatric comorbidity that makes the study protocol inadvisable (i.e., post-traumatic stress disorder, autism, psychotic disorder, bipolar I or II disorder, eating disorder, alcohol or substance abuse or current use)