Co-Designing the iCanBlend Model: A Blended Psychological Therapy Intervention for Treating Anxiety and Depression in the Context of Cancer.

BACKGROUND

Treatment uptake for depression and anxiety in psycho-oncology is low. Blended psychological therapy (BT), which combines self-guided digital content with clinician-delivered sessions, may improve treatment access and engagement. In Australia, no BT program exists in routine cancer care.

OBJECTIVE

To co-design a BT intervention clinically appropriate for anxiety/depression treatment in cancer patients and investigate its potential acceptability and feasibility for implementation in psycho-oncology in Australia.

METHOD: Qualitative, co-design focus groups were conducted via videoconference with psycho-oncology psychologists in two stages: co-design of a cancer-specific BT model prototype (stage I) and confirmation of prototype content and structure acceptability (stage II). Participants provided iterative feedback on cancer-specific CBT elements to include in the BT intervention. Data were analyzed using an Interpretive Description approach.

RESULTS

Fourteen clinicians participated across five co-design workshops. In stage I, identified themes were: (i) importance of the intake interview and orientation to the program; (ii) the prominent role of face-to-face contact in the BT model; and (iii) suitability of content for digital delivery. Stage II themes were: (i) feasibility of BT in psycho-oncology; and (ii) perceived importance of face-to-face for improved content delivery. The resulting BT intervention model ("iCanBlend") had a higher dose of face-to-face over digital sessions to promote treatment engagement and enhance duty-of-care online.

CONCLUSION

Overall, iCanBlend was acceptable and clinically appropriate for the cancer context in Australia, although feasibility was not confirmed, given participants' preference for face-to-face support for digital content. Future research is required with clinicians and patients to determine usability.