Implementing Cognitive Processing Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in a University Counseling Center

摘要

College students experience a wide variety of traumatic events, including childhood or recent physical or sexual abuse or assau veteran students may also be survivors of combat or military sexual assault, accidents, or natural disasters. Past findings have indicated the rate of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in college students is around 12%. Despite this, evidence-based treatment for PTSD has not been widely disseminated in university counseling centers (UCCs). Cognitive processing therapy (CPT) has a strong body of evidence to support its use with a variety of trauma etiologies, is time-limited, and can be provided in individual or group modalities. Initial, outcome research for CPT in a UCC has indicated that it holds promise as a treatment in this setting. Additionally, the benefits of CPT have been demonstrated to lead to long-lasting improvement. This makes CPT a potential fit for UCCs that have limited resources in terms of staff, space, and time. This article is based on the experience of implementing CPT in a large UCC at a Big Ten school with a widely diverse student population. Some challenges in using CPT in a UCC setting are discussed. Common trauma etiologies for this population, and vignettes relevant to university counseling, are also provided.