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Evaluating MDMA-assisted therapy for first responders with PTSD
Reach Wellness has chosen to partner with Emyria, a pioneer in the development and delivery of innovative mental health treatments on a landmark collaboration aimed at improving care options for those on the front lines of our communities who suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)—the “First Relief for First Responders” campaign.
This collaboration emerges against a backdrop of over 1,000,000 Australians grappling with PTSD, where traditional treatments can fall short in up to half of all patients *1. This challenge is further compounded by the sobering statistic that veterans and first responders have a 60% higher incidence of PTSD compared to the broader population *2. Furthermore, Australia is in the midst of a glaring mental health workforce shortfall *3.
Recent clinical trials suggest an intensive 12-16 week program of MDMA-assisted therapy has promising clinical efficacy in addressing PTSD symptoms. In two phase 3 clinical trials, more than 67% of participants no longer met the criteria of PTSD after 3 MDMA sessions with supportive therapy.
However, given the requirement for dedicated clinical infrastructure and the close support of a specially-trained team, the initial cost of treatment is expensive per 12-16 weeks of treatment and currently there is no health payer support which is the reason why this study is being funded.
Under the “First Relief for First Responders” program, Reach is pledging support for at least 50 first responders with a diagnosis of PTSD who are not reaching their health goals on their current treatment regime.
Pending further fundraising, Reach hopes to be able to expand the program further. The trial will evaluate Emyria’s MDMA-assisted therapy model supported by a long-term support program provided by Reach Wellness.
References
*1. https://www.phoenixaustralia.org/news/ptsd-awareness-day-2022/
*2. Bryant RA. The nature of PTSD in treatment-seeking first responders. Eur J Psychotraumatol. 2022 Jan 26;13(1):2011602.
About Emyria
Emyria is focused on developing and delivering new treatments for mental health and select neurological conditions by integrating clinical services and drug development.
Emyria Healthcare: Provides evidence-based mental health treatments for patients not finding relief from conventional care. Emyria’s clinical services also help evaluate emerging new therapies like MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD.
Emyria Data: Emyria gathers robust and ethically- sourced data with our patients to ensure we learn from their direct experience. Our data helps improve our care models and support our unique drug and therapy development pipeline.
Emyria’s Innovation Pipeline: We are actively involved in the development of new care models as well as drug therapies by working with world-class collaborators. This helps us to bring a positive impact to as many patients as possible.
Emyria website: www.emyria.com