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Europe's largest study on the effectiveness of online-supported cognitive behavioral therapy for sleep disorders has begun / Study aims to improve the care situation / Interested parties can register

Around one in ten Germans suffers from chronic insomnia and sleep disorders. The usual treatment with medication instead of psychotherapy has contradicted medical guidelines for years. The "GET Sleep - Stepped Care Model for the Treatment of Sleep Disorders" project aims to close this gap, including through improved advice from GPs and online therapy. The project is being funded by the Innovation Fund of the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) with more than six million euros over the entire project duration of four years and aims to significantly improve the care of people with chronic insomnia. The first study participants have already successfully completed the program. Further study participants who are interested in (online) treatment are now being sought.

"Instead of undergoing psychotherapy as recommended, most of those affected take medication, not least because places with therapists are rare," says Prof. Dr. Dr. Kai Spiegelhalder, Deputy Head of the Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg. "With the approach of our project, those affected receive the help they urgently need," continues Spiegelhalder, who is heading the project together with Head of Department Prof. Dr. Dieter Riemann.

In the large-scale study, a stepped care model is being compared with the current standard care. If the assessment is positive, the new procedure can be incorporated into the guidelines of the Joint Federal Committee and thus directly into the standard care provided by the health insurance funds. The new form of care is primarily based on sound advice from the respective GPs and online treatment. "The online treatment program developed in the project is specifically tailored to sleep disorders and is based on cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia," explains Riemann. "The feedback from patients and physicians on the program so far has been very promising." The step-by-step model allows treatment to be adapted to the individual needs of patients. Furthermore, the internet-based therapy is an innovative concept that also enables people in structurally weak regions to receive adequate, guideline-compliant treatment.

If the GP consultation and online-based therapy are not successful, further treatment is provided by a specialist or specialist psychotherapist. Around 350 GPs in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria will take part in the project and several thousand sufferers will be treated.

Sufferers and general practitioners wanted

Interested sufferers aged 18 and over throughout Germany and general practitioners in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg can find out more at www.getsleep.de and register to take part in the study with immediate effect. With the help of a self-test on the homepage, interested parties with sleep disorders can check whether they are suitable for participation in the study.

In addition to the Medical Center - University of Freiburg, the following partners are involved in the project: HelloBetter by GET.ON Institut für Online Gesundheitstrainings GmbH, the University of Ulm, the Department of General Medicine at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg, the Center for Sleep Medicine Nuremberg, KIRINUS Health GmbH, the German Society for Sleep Research and Sleep Medicine and BARMER health insurance.

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Dr. Kai Spiegelhalder
Deputy Head
Department of Psychophysiology and Sleep Medicine
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy
Uniklinik Freiburg
Phone: 0761 270-69780
kai.spiegelhalder@uniklinik-freiburg.de