BESTFORCAN -Bringing empirically supported treatments to children and adolescents after child abuse and neglect

The BESTFORCAN project is a project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research for the dissemination of evidence-based psychotherapy (Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – TF-CBT) for traumatized children and adolescents between the ages of 5 and 20 who have been victims of child abuse and neglect.

Physical or sexual abuse and neglect can have multiple and serious effects on the mental health of children and adolescents. In order to treat the consequences of abuse and neglect in children and adolescents, specific trauma-focused psychotherapeutic treatment approaches have been developed. Their effectiveness has been confirmed many times. One such therapeutic approach is the Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (TF-CBT) according to Cohen, Mannarino and Deblinger.

This evidence-based psychotherapy, however, has so far been available to only a few patients in Germany. Our project BESTFORCAN, has therefore set itself the goal of making this treatment approach accessible to more traumatised children and adolescents aged 5-20 in Germany. This includes the free training and supervision of child and adolescent psychotherapists as well as child and adolescent psychotherapists in training in many regions of Germany. In addition, these psychotherapists are networked in interdisciplinary, regional help-networks with paediatricians and child and youth welfare. The cild and youth welfare staff as well as the paediatricians are trained to recognise trauma-related disorders in children and adolescents and to refer those affected to a suitable psychotherapeutic service in their region as quickly as possible.

Registration and Information

Anyone interested can easily register for participation by e-mail to bestforcan@zpt-gu.de or via our website www.bestforcan.de If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact our study coordination team.

Study director: Apl. Prof. Dr. Regina Steil

Study coordination: Dr.Franziska Lechner-Meichsner, M.Sc. Anne Fischer

Network partners

Philipps-University Marburg, Prof. Dr. Hanna Christiansen

Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt, Prof. Dr. Rita Rosner

Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU), Assoc. Prof. Dr. David Daniel Ebert