IOP is considered a lower level of care. This means you don’t need hospitalization or around-the-clock supervision like you would in an inpatient, residential or partial hospitalization setting. Instead, IOP encompasses an average of nine hours per week that’s dedicated to individual and group therapy. The time is broken up into three-hour sessions three times per week, lasting four to six weeks total. This schedule allows you to get the concentrated treatment needed to manage and overcome a mental health disorder without leaving your job, school or family for an extended period of time.