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Introduction: Psychotherapy of depressive conditions is more and more in demand by patients. The effect of individual cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on depression is well-documented, and foreign studies indicate that group CBT also works well. There was no Danish manual on group CBT for the purpose of clinical implementation. The aim of the present project was to develop such a manual and complete a preliminary evaluation of the outcome., Materials and Methods: A therapy manual consisting of 12 group sessions of 2 hours duration was developed. A constituent part of the evaluation of the clinical effect was 10 group courses with a total of 51 consecutively referred patients with a non-psychotic depression requiring treatment., Results: On the basis of clinical experience, the manual has been revised and is now ready for publication. 80% of the patients completed the therapy course with a large Effect Size (ES) on psychiatric/depression symptoms (SCL-90R) and function level (GAF), as well as moderate ES on the degree of hopelessness (BHS)., Conclusion: The development and clinical implementation of a manual in cognitive behavioral group therapy has resulted in this treatment now being offered as permanent treatment for depressive patients throughout the cooperating centers. The existing manual can relatively easily be implemented in other treatment centers and clinics. The preliminary results are positive, but the design does not permit further conclusions.

Introduction: The aim of this article is to present the qualitative focus group interview as a useful method of evaluating psycho- and milieu therapeutic treatment., Material and Methods: We conducted two focus group interviews with former inpatients of a psychiatric ward specialising in group therapy. To enhance the quality of the data by triangulation, the staff, representing both milieu- and psychotherapists, were also interviewed., Results: Analysis of the results revealed the following dominant themes: The continuation of the treatment was jeopardised by the existence of a welcome group. There was a need for further information as soon as the patient came into contact with the hospital. Moreover, an earlier and increased involvement of the family was required. After their own interview, the staff participated in deciding which results should lead to alterations in treatment procedures, thereby becoming involved in implementing the results., Discussion: The focus group interview is a valuable method of evaluating psycho- and milieu therapeutic treatment. Interviewing the staff served as triangulation and eased the implementation of the results remarkably.