Dissemination of DBT for borderline personality disorder in Egypt, facts and challenges

Abstract

Background

DBT proved to be effective in reducing suicidal behavior, non-suicidal self-injury, psychiatric hospitalization, treatment dropout, substance use, anger, and depression and improving social and global functioning in Borderline personality disorder. As a step towards increasing utilization of evidence based treatments in the Egyptian healthcare system, the team at Alexandria university started a comprehensive DBT program.

Aim

To describe the implementation and dissemination experience of DBT in Egypt.

Methods

The implementation of DBT is examined quantitatively. Numbers were calculated retrospectively from the records at the implementation start in December 2013 and after 3 years in September 2016.

Results

Number of therapists increased from one team of 2 therapists and one observer to 16 therapists organized in 3 teams plus 4 observers. The initial team, 7 psychiatrists and 2 clinical psychologists, could host and attend the first DBT Intensive Training in the middle east in 2014. DBT intensive training is the official training model developed by Dr. Linehan. We started with 8 clients one group for adults in Alexandria at 2013, increasing to 150 clients in 12 groups for adults, adolescent and SUD patients in 2016 with an average increase of 18.75 folds. The team participated and presented about DBT in 23 local and regional scientific meetings and hosted two workshops in collaboration with BehavioralTech, the official training institute.

Conclusions

Although the DBT implementation in Egypt represented a great challenge, results are showing a promising increase in the number of trained therapists and participating clients.

Disclosure of interest

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.