Developing Coping Skills in Pre-Transplant Patients - A Facilitator’s Guide to Group Intervention

Sep 18, 2026

Developing Coping Skills in Pre-Transplant Patients presents a facilitator’s guide for a closed group intervention designed for candidates awaiting solid organ transplant. Grounded in the Transactional Theory of Stress and Behavioral Self-Regulation, it teaches problem-focused, emotion-focused, and reduces dysfunctional coping linked to worse mental-health outcomes. The program integrates elements of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, and Narrative Therapy, delivered across an eight-week structure to strengthen healthy coping, trust, belonging, and safety.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages72

Reading Time3 h 1 min

AccessFree to download

WEEK ONE

Stress, uncertainty and transplant

WEEK TWO

Coping strategies—change, types of coping and problem-focused coping

WEEK THREE

Emotion focused coping—Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, automatic negative thoughts, thinking errors and mindfulness

WEEK FOUR

Emotion focused coping—relaxation, dysfunctional coping

WEEK FIVE

Self identity—society and self identity, shame and guilt

WEEK SIX

Interpersonal relationships and transplant—Stress and communication

WEEK SEVEN

Interpersonal relationships and transplant—Communication with healthcare providers

WEEK EIGHT

Summary and group closure

Developing coping skills in pre-transplant patients A facilitator’s guide to group intervention Tasneem Remtulla MSW RSW, Dee Miner MSW RSW & Julie Craig MSW RSW This manual has been written by the Alberta Health Services (AHS) Staff: Tasneem Remtulla MSWRSW, Dee Miner MSW RSW & Julie Craig MSW RSW Cover photo credit: Public domain image [Piqsels.com](Piqsels.com) ( [https://www.piqsels.com/en/public-domain](https://www.piqsels.com/en/public-domain)photo-fonwx) Copyright © 2020 Alberta Health Services, Southern Alberta Transplant Program. This copyright work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivative 4.0 International license. You are free to copy and distribute the work including in other media and formats for non-commercial purposes, as long as you attribute the work to Alberta Health Services, do not adapt the work, and abide by the other licence terms. To view a copy of this licence, see [https://creativecommons.org/l](https://creativecommons.org/l)icenses/by-nc-nd/4 .0/ . The licence does not apply to AHS trademarks, logos or content for which Alberta Health Services is not the copyright owner. LEGAL DISCLAIMER This material is intended for general information only and is provided on an "as is", "where is" basis. Although reasonable efforts were made to confirm the accuracy of the information, Alberta Health Services does not make any representation or warranty, express, implied or statutory, as to the accuracy, reliability, completeness, applicability or fitness for a particular purpose of such information. This material is not a substitute for the advice of a qualified health professional. Alberta Health Services expressly disclaims all liability for the use of these materials, and for any claims, actions, demands or suits arising from such use. The following manual is based on the ‘Transactional Theory of Stress’ developed by Richard Lazarus and Susan Folkman (1986) and the model of ‘Behavioral Self-Regulation’ by Charles Carver (1989) . This model identifies three constructs of coping; problem-focused, emotion-focused and dysfunctional coping strategies. An onslaught of investigations on various medical populations have demonstrated consistent findings indicating that specific coping strategies; emotion-focused and problem-focused, produce favorable outcomes when used with a particular stressor in the right context. Conversely, dysfunctional strategies are consistently associated with negative mental-health outcomes. This intervention assists pre-organ transplant candidates by adding to their repertoire of healthy coping skills and reducing their reliance on dysfunctional coping. This manual incorporates aspects of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction and Narrative Therapy delivered within a framework of positive coping skills. As authors of this manual, we have utilized this intervention in a group format with patients awaiting solid organ transplant. We have done so in a closed group format, enrolling a maximum of ten patients per group to participate in the eight week program. We assert that emotional distress related to chronic illness, and the wait for transplantation does not discriminate based on disease etiology. Our clinical experience would support the same. In facilitating this group over the last seven years, we have consistently observed that patients find more similarities in their illness narrative and treatment goals than they find differences. We have witnessed this foster a cohesive environment of trust, belonging and safety amongst members despite the particulars of their physiological symptoms. Your scope of practice, service requirements and population needs will determine how you implement this manual and deliver the content, therefore it is the authors' recommendation that facilitators create their own teaching tools, ie; power point slides, visual aids and/or handouts that capture the curriculum. This manua

FAQs

What coping skills does this manual help pre-transplant patients develop?

It helps patients build a repertoire of healthy coping skills while reducing reliance on dysfunctional coping strategies linked to negative mental-health outcomes.

What theoretical framework informs the group intervention?

The manual is based on the Transactional Theory of Stress and the model of Behavioral Self-Regulation, describing problem-focused, emotion-focused, and dysfunctional coping.

How is the group intervention structured and delivered?

It uses a closed group format with a maximum of ten patients per group and runs as an eight-week program with weekly topics addressing stress, coping strategies, identity, and interpersonal communication.

Sep 18, 2026

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