Journal of Psychopharmacology
July 31, 2024
Roman Palitsky, Deanna M. Kaplan, John Perna et al.
32 citations
A multidisciplinary working group identified 54 potential adverse events that warrant systematic assessment in psychedelic-assisted therapies, finding that existing measurement tools substantially fail to cover these constructs. The group developed recommendations for when and how to assess these adverse events across preparation, dosing, integration, and follow-up phases, and demonstrated a preliminary assessment protocol. The framework addresses the need to capture post-acute dosing adverse events, accounting for both the pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy components of psychedelic-assisted therapy, as well as documented impacts on worldviews and spirituality.
PLoS ONE
January 2, 2024
Caroline Peacock, Erin Brauer, Ali John Zarrabi et al.
27 citations
Spiritual health practitioners bring unique expertise to psychedelic-assisted therapy based on their training and professional experience. Interviews with 15 such practitioners revealed seven themes in two domains: unique contributions (competency with spiritual material, awareness of power dynamics, familiarity with non-ordinary states, holding space, counterbalancing biomedical perspectives) and general contributions (using general therapeutic skills and supporting interdisciplinary collaboration). Their skills complement other clinical team members, and psychedelic-assisted therapy teams may benefit from including them. Further work is needed to define roles, qualifications, and training for these clinicians.
March 5, 2024
Roman Palitsky, Deanna M. Kaplan, John Perna et al.
4 citations
preprint
A multidisciplinary working group identified 53 potential adverse events (AEs) specific to psychedelic-assisted therapies (PATs) that current assessment tools miss. Existing measures cover only a fraction of these constructs. The group recommends new assessment methods—including patient, clinician, and informant reports—and specifies when to measure AEs across preparation, dosing, integration, and follow-up phases. The framework addresses gaps in capturing post-acute dosing effects, including changes in worldview and spirituality, which distinguish PAT from other treatments.
Psychedelics
April 29, 2025
Ishan Pasricha, Caroline Peacock, Roman Palitsky et al.
3 citations
Spiritual health practitioners (healthcare chaplains) increasingly facilitate psychedelic-assisted therapy. A qualitative study of 15 such practitioners (60% female, average age 46.57) found two main themes: initial motivations and ongoing sources of meaning. Personal psychedelic experiences were a key initial motivator. Ongoing fulfillment came from witnessing healing in others and positive personal impacts of facilitating care. Personal experiences provide valuable firsthand knowledge of psychedelic phenomenology but may introduce bias. Training guidelines from the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education, emphasizing self-literacy and reflection, may help address these risks. The authors introduce a reflective learning exercise based on these findings.
Psychedelics.
December 17, 2024
Zachary Bosshardt, Jessica L. Maples‐keller, Deanna M. Kaplan et al.
Attendees at a conference on psychedelics and spiritual care generally agreed that microdosing may have benefits and expressed modest concern about potential harm from therapeutic psychedelic use. Among 178 survey respondents, 40.2% agreed or strongly agreed that psychedelics could be harmful therapeutically, while 30.7% were unsure. A subset of 32 psychedelic care facilitators reported using psychedelics to treat a wide range of diagnoses with diverse psychotherapy approaches and endorsed a need for cultural adaptations in psychedelic treatments.