# Headache Specialists’ Perceptions of the Role of Health Psychologists in Headache Management: A Qualitative Study

## TL;DR

This study explores how headache specialists view the role of health psychologists in treating headache disorders, emphasizing collaboration and non-drug therapies.

## Contribution

The study provides new insights into headache specialists' perceptions of health psychologists and their integration into multidisciplinary care.

## Key findings

- Headache specialists value health psychologists for providing non-pharmacological treatments like CBT and biofeedback.
- Specialists prefer in-person communication with health psychologists and often use multiple titles when referring to them.
- Collaboration with headache-specific psychologists is seen as essential for improving care quality and training.

## Abstract

Background

Since headache specialists cannot treat all the patients with headache disorders, multidisciplinary teams that include health psychologists are becoming more prevalent. Health psychologists mainly use a form of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), along with biofeedback on occasion, to effectively address patients’ pain and headache disorders. The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is one setting that routinely includes a health psychologist with advanced training in pain disorders in their pain care to its veterans. The VHA has established Headache Centers of Excellence (HCoE) around the country to provide multidisciplinary treatment for patients with headache disorders, which enables headache specialists to regularly interact with health psychologists.

Objective

The study’s objective is to evaluate headache specialists’ views of health psychologists in the treatment of patients with headache disorders.

Method

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with headache specialists in academic-based healthcare settings, the community, and VHA HCoE sites. The interviews were audio-recorded and de-identified so they could be transcribed and analyzed using content matrix analysis.

Results

Four themes emerged: headache specialists desired to work with health psychologists and included them as members of multidisciplinary teams; valued health psychologists because they provided non-pharmacological treatments, such as CBT and biofeedback; preferred in-person communication with health psychologists; and used multiple titles when referring to health psychologists.

Conclusion

Headache specialists valued health psychologists as providers of behavioral and non-pharmacological treatments and considered them essential members of multidisciplinary teams. Headache specialists should strive to work with a headache psychologist, not just a general health psychologist. By committing to this, headache specialists can foster changes in the quality of care, resource allocation, and training experiences related to health psychologists.