An Online Tailored Cognitive Therapy-Based Intervention for Depression in Multiple Sclerosis: ACTION-MS Online

Brief Summary

Individuals with MS experience significantly high levels of depression which are higher than in any other chronic illness or neurological disorder. Depression can occur at any point in the course of the disease. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) has been found to be effective in treating depression in people with MS. However, many individuals with MS who would benefit from CBT for depression do not participate in face-to-face treatment due to lack of clinician referral, accessibility, modality preference, cost, and mobility and travel issues due to health reasons. Given the acceptability and preference for telehealth treatment options, digital-based psychological interventions can be another appealing treatment option as these programs have the ability to deliver interactive CBT treatments for depression to individuals with MS at a time and location convenient to the individual. The current trial proposes to test the acceptability, effectiveness, satisfaction and cost-effectiveness of an 8-week online depression intervention targeting individuals with multiple sclerosis and compare this intervention with an 8-week online health and wellbeing in MS informational intervention.