9 out of 10 Psychological Counseling Clients Show 'Improvement'... Ongoing Management is Key [Rebuilding Mind Investment②]

Discussion and Improvement Needed on Appropriate Number of Sessions
35% Unaware of Counselor Qualifications

According to statistics, 9 out of 10 users of the National Mind Investment Project reported emotional difficulties improved after psychological counseling. However, there was significant skepticism about their future mental state, and many expressed a desire for additional counseling services.

On the 11th, Nam In-soon, a member of the National Assembly’s Health and Welfare Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea, received the ‘Mind Investment Project User Satisfaction Survey’ from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. The survey showed that 91.3% of respondents reported improvement in major emotional difficulties, 4.2% reported no change, and 4.5% reported worsening. When asked whether they could handle emotional difficulties on their own in the future, 70.5% answered yes, 17.5% answered average, and 12.4% answered no. Negative responses were higher among people in their 20s, those with a high school education or less, and the unemployed. This suggests that continuous monitoring is necessary for high-risk groups such as those with depression and anxiety.

The effectiveness of the Mind Investment Project was also somewhat proven through the depression health survey (PHQ-9). At the time of applying for psychological counseling services, 37.0% of respondents did not remember their PHQ-9 results, 28.5% had severe depressive symptoms, 24.6% had moderate depressive symptoms, 7.9% had mild depressive symptoms, and 2% had no depressive symptoms. At the end of the service, among respondents aware of their PHQ-9 test results, 67.9% reported improvement, 31.5% reported no change, and 0.5% reported worsening.

On the other hand, many opinions indicated that the number of psychological counseling sessions in the Mind Investment Project was insufficient. When users were asked about desired improvements to the Mind Investment Project, 80.8% requested additional counseling. Mr. A said, “I feel the period of 8 sessions is too short to feel psychological stability. I am only now getting closer to the core of my difficulties and accept the expert’s opinion that more counseling is needed, but due to financial reasons, it is difficult to continue counseling. As a result, I stopped counseling and am experiencing more psychological difficulties.” Ms. B said, “As a mother of multiple children suffering from long-term depression, it helped the whole family, but the number of sessions was too few, so it is very disappointing to have to stop just as improvement was about to begin.” Mr. C said, “For those who need counseling over the medium to long term, the number of sessions should be significantly extended,” and added, “I hope the number of sessions increases to at least 10.”

Additionally, many users were unaware of the types of certifications held by their assigned counselors. This issue arises because users are generally directed to the nearest location to their home. When asked if they knew the certifications held by their psychological counseling experts, 35.2% responded that they did not know, the highest percentage. This was followed by 26.6% for Level 1 Counseling Psychologist, 20.4% for Level 1 Mental Health Specialist, 10.0% for Level 1 Clinical Psychologist, 7.4% for Level 1 Youth Counselor/Professional Counseling Teacher, 6.8% for Level 1 Professional Counselor, and 5.3% for Level 2 Counseling Psychologist.

The report stated, “When proceeding with the Mind Investment Project in the future, it is necessary to review whether additional psychological counseling sessions can be provided considering the available personnel and project budget, and improvements are required through expert consultation on the appropriate number of sessions and in-depth interviews with respondents.”

※ If you have difficult-to-talk-about concerns such as depression or know family or acquaintances experiencing such difficulties, you can receive 24-hour expert counseling through the suicide prevention hotline ☎109 or the suicide prevention SNS counseling service “Madeullan.”