BEACON at the Schizophrenia International Research Society conference

Members of the division presented at the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS) conference, with work spanning a poster session, a research talk, and a plenary discussion. Victoria Lisowski presented a poster on BEACON (Brief, Evidence-based, Accessible Care for Ongoing Needs), a technology-assisted psychotherapy model for people with psychosis, a category of conditions that can include hallucinations, delusions, and disorganized thinking. Sunnie Li gave a talk on the program. Dr. John Torous led Plenary VI: From Apps to AI, Assessing the Risks and Benefits of Innovative Technology for Schizophrenia Research and Care.

BEACON was developed to address a persistent gap: despite the availability of effective treatments, most people with psychosis do not receive evidence-based therapy due to limited provider availability and access barriers. The model is designed to scale care without reducing clinical quality.

Treatment is delivered over eight weeks across three components. A clinician provides cognitive-behavioral therapy adapted for psychosis, drawing on a transdiagnostic framework that targets core emotional processes, including added modules for hallucinations and delusions. A digital health navigator offers technical support and helps patients stay engaged with the program. Patients interact daily with mindLAMP, an app that collects both self-reported symptom data and passive sensor data from patients' phones, enabling clinicians to adjust treatment in real time based on what the data shows.

The program includes features developed specifically for psychosis, among them a reality-testing tool that allows patients to record and replay sounds to help distinguish internal from external experiences.

Early real-world testing suggests the model is feasible across the psychosis spectrum, from individuals at high risk to those with chronic illness. Patients show high app engagement and strong therapeutic alliance, with initial observations pointing to improvements in symptoms, mood, and daily functioning, including during periods of acute symptom worsening.