Ketamine-Assisted Group Psychotherapy for Frontline Healthcare Workers with COVID-19-Related Burnout and PTSD: A Case Series of Effectiveness/Safety for 10 Participants.
Reid Robison, Madeline Brendle, Claire Moore, Hannah Cross, Lindsay Helm, Shannon Darling, Stephen Thayer, Paul Thielking, Scott Shannon
Journal of psychoactive drugs January 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2023.2186285 via PubMed
Summary
Ten frontline healthcare workers with burnout and PTSD symptoms were treated with group ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) in a private clinic. They attended six weekly sessions: one preparation, three ketamine sessions (two sublingual, one intramuscular), and two integration sessions. PTSD, depression, and anxiety scores improved from pre- to post-treatment, with a 59% reduction in PTSD scores, 58% reduction in depression scores, and 36% reduction in anxiety scores. After treatment, all participants screened negative for PTSD, 90% had minimal or mild depression, and 60% had minimal or mild anxiety. Ketamine was well tolerated with no significant adverse events. Participant feedback supported the improvements.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Case series Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 10 |
| Population | Frontline healthcare workers employed during the COVID-19 pandemic experiencing burnout and PTSD |
| Intervention | Ketamine-assisted psychotherapy |
| Duration | 6-week intervention, 1-month follow-up |
| Topics | Anxiety Depression Ketamine PTSD |
| Keywords | Case series |
| Key finding | Weekly group KAP produced immediate improvements in PTSD, depression, and anxiety symptoms among 10 frontline healthcare workers. |
Abstract
This study reports on 10 frontline healthcare workers, employed during the COVID-19 pandemic and experiencing symptoms of burnout and PTSD, treated with group ketamine-assisted psychotherapy (KAP) in a private outpatient clinic setting. Participants attended 6 sessions once weekly. These included 1 preparation session, 3 ketamine sessions (2 sublingual, 1 intramuscular), 2 integration sessions. Measures of PTSD (PCL-5), depression (PHQ-9), and anxiety (GAD-7) were administered at baseline and post-treatment. During ketamine sessions, the Emotional Breakthrough Inventory (EBI) and the 30-item Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ-30) were recorded. Participant feedback was gathered 1-month post-treatment. We observed improvements in participants' average PCL-5 (59% reduction), PHQ-9 (58% reduction), and GAD-7 (36% reduction) scores from pre- to post-treatment. At post-treatment, 100% of participants screened negative for PTSD, 90% had minimal/mild depression or clinically significant improvement, and 60% had minimal/mild anxiety or clinically significant improvement. MEQ and EBI scores had large variations among participants at each ketamine session. Ketamine was well tolerated, and no significant adverse events were reported. Participant feedback corroborated findings of improvements observed in mental health symptoms. We found immediate improvements treating 10 frontline healthcare workers experiencing burnout, PTSD, depression, and anxiety using weekly group KAP and integration.