Swiss Medical Society for Psycholytic Therapy

The Swiss Medical Society for Psycholytic Therapy, now presented on its site as SÄPT, is a Switzerland-based interdisciplinary medical society founded in 1986. It primarily serves German-speaking clinicians and related therapeutic professionals, including psychiatry, psychotherapy, neurology, palliative care, general medicine, psychology, and other therapeutic fields. Its core activities include professional exchange, training, and supporting medically supervised psychedelic-assisted therapy.

SÄPT positions itself as a field-building organization for psychedelic-assisted therapy in Switzerland, with a focus on research support, quality standards, and professional education. Its website states that members have supported studies involving MDMA-assisted psychotherapy and LSD-assisted psychotherapy, and it currently lists ongoing or recent study and training announcements, including LSD studies for life-limiting illness, cluster headache, alcohol dependence, and older adults, plus an institutional PAT working group and treatment recommendations through IG PAT. It also provides patient-facing information on where psychedelic-assisted therapy may be available and on support options for difficult psychedelic experiences, which makes it a practical access and referral-adjacent stakeholder rather than a broad public advocacy group.

Historically, SÄPT reports that five therapists received Swiss federal exception permits from 1988 to 1993 to conduct psychedelic-assisted therapy with MDMA and LSD in private practice, treating about 170 patients. Today it appears to operate mainly as a professional society that advances psycholytic therapy through education, research collaboration, ethical standards, and guidance for clinicians working within Switzerland’s restricted medical-use framework. Potential collaboration areas include clinical research, training, treatment standards, institutional implementation, and patient information pathways for researchers, clinicians, funders, policy groups, and patient communities.