Cracking The Code Of Healing: Can Trained Coders Observe Therapeutic Moments In Psilocybin Therapy?

Findings from a new study conducted by novel therapeutics cancer firm Sunstone Therapies and the University of Vermont’s Conversation Lab show the feasibility of trained human coders to identify observable markers of therapeutic connection during psilocybin administration within Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy (PAT.)

“Discussion around psilocybin therapy is often focused on the drug. However, the support provided by the therapists who are present throughout the psilocybin session is arguably just as important,” said Sunstone’s CEO and cofounder Dr. Manish Agrawal. 

Published in the Journal of Palliative Medicine, the research analyzed audio and video data from a Sunstone-led Phase 2 open-label study of psilocybin therapy’s effects on patients with cancer and Major Depressive Disorder (MDD.) 

From the 2,074 minutes of video examined, the three study coders recorded 372 moments of therapeutic connection. 

Of these, 83% were identified by at least two coders and 41% were identified by the three, using a combination of audible and visual cues half the time, and exclusively audible or visual cues 33% and 16% of the time respectively. 

According to the researchers, these results indicate the viability of observing the frequency, distribution and overlap of markers to identify and define moments of therapeutic connection, thereby laying the groundwork for future work into a direct-observation coding system of therapist-patient interactions in PAT studies.

Dr. Agrawal says that, although the study was relatively small, its findings provide a foundation for further research to “refine, scale and implement a robust model for therapeutic support in psychedelic-assisted therapy,” affecting in turn training and quality measurement and ultimately “how we deliver psychedelic therapies responsibly and safely.”

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Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash