Frequently Asked Questions

If you are interested in participating in our study, you probably have a number of questions. Below are the most frequently asked questions about our project. Feel free, however, to contact us for more information about any of these issues or if you have questions not addressed here.

This study is designed and conducted by Dr. Monnica Williams, an African-American research professor, at the Center for the Treatment and Study of Anxiety at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. More about our project team...

Any documents you sign, where you can be identified by name, will be kept in a locked drawer in Dr. Williams' office. These documents will be kept confidential. Any information held on a computer will be analyzed using a code number rather than your name. All documents will be destroyed when the study is over. The Institutional Review Board (IRB) at the University of Pennsylvania is responsible for protecting the rights and welfare of volunteers like you and has reviewed and approved this study.

If you choose to participate, your involvement will be for a period of 3-4 hours, not including the phone screening and phone follow-up.

Determining eligibility would begin with a phone interview that would last around 15 minutes. Basic information is gathered about you, including a brief mental health background, medication information, and past therapy history. If you seem like a good fit, you will be scheduled for the evaluation. The counselor who will be doing your evaluation will call you the day before to introduce herself and review your symptoms. A good first step is to give our center a call so that one of the research assistants who works on the study can conduct the phone interview.

You will be asked to complete several questionnaires about your tendency to worry about various things. Your counselor will confirm your OCD diagnosis by asking you questions about different situations that may make you anxious. Most people with OCD have other anxiety or mood disorders as well, so the counselor will be conducting an interview about other difficulties you may be having or may have had in the past. She will then administer a short interview about things that may have gotten in the way of you getting treatment for your OCD. Based on what is learned from the interview, the counselor will review with you your treatment options and discuss with you where you can get treatment.

There is no direct benefit to you. However, your participation could help us to better understand OCD in African-Americans and why African-Americans with OCD are not getting help. Also you will receive a free clinical mental health evaluation, for which we would normally charge $400. You will be able to discuss your treatment options with an OCD expert. Finally, we will provide referrals for treatment of your OCD.

This study does not include treatment for your OCD. However, one of our goals is to help you find treatment if you want it. We will give you contact information for places that can treat your OCD, and depeding on your situation, our center may be one of those places. However, you are under no obligation to receive treatment from our center or anywhere else.

No, you would receive the same evaluation in the study as you would if you came to our fee-for-services clinic. This evaluation normally costs $400, but there is no charge to you.

We are accepting participants for up to ten months, which is until the Spring of 2010. Based on our funding, there are only a limited number of spots and once each spot is filled there will be no more spaces opened. If the project moves more quickly than anticipated, it is possible that we may stop taking participants sooner. If you are interested in the study, it is better to call soon and ensure that you are able to take advantage of this opportunity for a no-cost evaluation at an internationally-renowned OCD clinic.

Our website is an excellent place to look for more information about our clinic and the study itself. You can also check online at the OC Foundation, which is a nationwide organization that has good general information about OCD as well as information about providers. Finally, you might want to look into some books on OCD. Stop Obsessing! How to Overcome Your Obsessions and Compulsions, written by Dr. Edna Foa and Dr. R. Reid Wilson, is a widely used book that is excellent for family members and patients alike. More information about resources for OCD...

The first and best thing to do is to call our center so that someone can fully explain the study and schedule an appointment. Contact us for more information.