Brief therapies to be included in mental health and substance abuse services in Western Uusimaa

Approximately one in five Finnish people will suffer from a mental disorder during their lifetime. Access to effective treatment is delayed. This leads to symptoms becoming chronic and treatment being hindered during the waiting period. There is a shortage of quickly accessible low-threshold treatment. 

We want to solve this issue in the Western Uusimaa area. We want to offer appropriate treatment as quickly as possible in basic healthcare at health stations and mental health and substance abuse clinics.  

“When a customer arrives at a health station, it would be good for first contact workers to be able to assess the level of mental health and substance abuse services the customer needs. The most appropriate treatment is found when the level and nature of the customer’s symptoms are mapped expertly and the individual needs and wishes of the patient are taken into account,” says Project Manager Petri Luomaa. 

That is why we want to train health station doctors, nurses and telephone service workers to utilise our assessment tool – Terapianavigaattori (therapy navigator). 

In the therapy navigator, the customer explains their own wishes and hopes for treatment. The expert will get a summary of the navigator results, which they may use to draft an assessment of the service needed by the customer together with the customer. 

The customer can be referred to brief therapy, combining the customer’s self-care work and professional guidance.  

Guided self-care, a form of brief therapy, is a treatment that requires 1–3 visits, and in which the patient’s self-care on the Mentalhub.fi website(external link) (in Finnish) is key. Meetings with professionals alternate with independent work. A professional health care employee will support self-care work and help in selecting the right treatment plan, setting goals and practicing key skills in terms of treatment. 

The ‘Etulinjan lyhytterapia’ (Etulinja’s brief therapy) treatment usually lasts for seven meetings on average and can be used to treat mild and moderate mental disorders. 

When someone suffering from mild symptoms of anxiety or depression seeks professional help as early on as possible, their rehabilitation is likely to accelerate. With timely brief treatment, customers get help sooner than before, which may prevent the duration of their symptoms from extending. 

There is plenty of scientific proof of the efficiency of brief therapies. According to studies, brief therapies consisting of approximately 5–10 visits with a health care professional are as effective as long therapies in the treatment of anxiety and depression, for example. 

Those living in Finland may also utilise online therapy. Online therapy is efficient low-threshold treatment that is available quickly; customers may have access to treatment in roughly one week. You can be referred to online therapy at the health station, by occupational healthcare or student healthcare. 

Online therapy usually starts in approximately one week after a professional has referred you. The therapy lasts for 2–4 months. Read more about online therapy on the Mentalhub.fi website in Finnish(external link).