Development of an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Workshop for Diabetes

Presentation This case describes the development of an Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) workshop for people with diabetes, designed to help meet the acute need for quality psychological care for patients. There were multiple considerations in developing the quality improvement program: 1. The group nature of the program. Group environments enhance social modeling and provide support not possible in individual therapy. 2. Efficiency and resource management. This workshop does not duplicate resources already offered. 3. Time commitment of participants. The group consisted of four 90-minute sessions, which we believed would be an adequate amount of time to teach the desired ACT intervention based on previous work (1). 4. Reduction of stigmatization and increase in participation. We wanted to avoid the words “therapy,” “intervention,” and “group.” The intervention was titled “Living a Vital Life with Diabetes” and was referred to as “A 4-Part Workshop Series.”