New York City-based Resilience Lab has launched a group therapy offering.
The hybrid outpatient mental health provider grounds the service in measurement-based care for each group member, with evidence-based skill-building to address anxiety and depression. The service — covered by insurance — is offered through a pilot program in New York and New Jersey.
Group therapy helps providers address two of the nation’s most prominent mental health access issues: the mental health clinician shortage and affordability.
“Unfortunately, group therapy in private practice is often used as a placeholder for clients as they wait to get a therapist or to artificially minimize waitlists,” Marc Goldberg, co-founder & CEO of Resilience Lab, said in a news release. “It was important for Resilience Lab to develop a successful modality of care where clients could receive standalone mental health care that could reach more people, reduce costs and be covered by insurance while providing high-quality care.”
The company sees patients in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania.
The American Psychological Association finds that as little as 5% of the therapy provided in private practice is done through group therapy.
“But group therapy is as effective as individual therapy for a wide range of symptoms and conditions, and it is more efficient, allowing a single therapist to reach many people at once,” the APA said. “In many cases, groups can be even more effective than individual therapy, thanks to the stigma reduction and solidarity that people experience in the presence of their peers.”
Group therapy is a common treatment modality in facility-based care. Federal survey data of facilities finds that 99% of psychiatric hospitals offer group therapy, while 92% of addiction treatment providers offer the service.
Resilience Lab landed $15 million about a year ago in its Series A funding round. Earlier in the year, the organization’s therapists voted in favor of forming a union, one of the few in the private behavioral health space.
There have been a handful of group therapy-related developments in the wider behavioral health industry in recent months.
A few months ago, the hybrid outpatient mental health startup Two Chairs announced it had launched group therapy alongside a new care navigation service. Carraway, a digital health company specializing in women’s care, acquired the digital group therapy company Sesh in a deal that closed in September.
Early stage ventures have included group therapy in their pitches to investors. Guidelight Health raised $16 million for its partial hospitalization (PHP) and intensive outpatient programs (IOPs) platform, which includes group therapy. Digital youth mental health startup Cartwheel Care Inc. landed a $20 million Series A funding round. It offers a range of services that include group therapy.