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Promoting recovery of schizophrenic patients: discrepancy between routine practice and evidence. The SIEP-DIRECT's Project

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 April 2011

Domenico Semisa ,
Massimo Casacchia ,
Walter Di Munzio ,
Giovanni Neri ,
Giacinto Buscaglia ,
Lorenzo Burti ,
Cristina Pucci ,
Giuseppe Corlito ,
Maurizio Bacigalupi  and
Roberto Parravani
...Show all authors
Domenico Semisa*
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Salute Mentale ASL Provinciale di Bari, Centro di Salute Mentale Acquaviva delle Fonti (Bari)
Massimo Casacchia
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Salute, Sezione di Psichiatria, Università de L'Aquila, L'Aquila
Walter Di Munzio
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale Salerno/1, Centro di Salute Mentale Nocera Inferiore
Giovanni Neri
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale Modena
Giacinto Buscaglia
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale 2 Savonese, Centro di Salute Mentale Albenga
Lorenzo Burti
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina e Sanità Pubblica, Sezione di Psichiatria e di Psicologia Clinica, Università di Verona, Verona
Cristina Pucci
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale, MOM-SMA 8, Azienda USL 10, Firenze
Giuseppe Corlito
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale Grosseto
Maurizio Bacigalupi
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale Roma/B, Centro di Salute Mentale, Roma
Roberto Parravani
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale Roma/B, Centro di Salute Mentale, Roma
Rita Roncone
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Scienze della Salute, Sezione di Psichiatria, Università de L'Aquila, L'Aquila
Doriana Cristofalo
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina e Sanità Pubblica, Sezione di Psichiatria e di Psicologia Clinica, Università di Verona, Verona
Antonio Lora
Affiliation:
Dipartimento Salute Mentale, Azienda Ospedaliera di Vimercate, Vimercate (Milano)
Mirella Ruggeri
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Medicina e Sanità Pubblica, Sezione di Psichiatria e di Psicologia Clinica, Università di Verona, Verona
*
Address fo correspondence: Dr. D. Semisa, Dipartimento di Salute Mentale ASL Provinciale di Bari, Centro di Salute Mentale Acquaviva delle Fonti, Via Nicola Carnevale 7, 70021 Acquaviva delle Fonti (Bari). Fax: +39-080-3077082 E-mail: domenico.semisa@alice.it
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Summary

Aims – The aim of this work is to present the main discrepancies, as evidenced by the SIEP-DIRECT's Project, between the evidence-based NICE guidelines for schizophrenia and the usual practices of the Italian mental health services in order to promote the recovery of patients with schizophrenia. Methods – Starting from the main NICE recommendations on recovery promotion, 41 indicators were developed. These were experimented in 19 participating Italian Mental Health Departments (MHD) or Psychiatric Services through self-evaluation of the activities carried out to promote patient recovery with the aim of assessing the level of adherence to the recommendations. The data required by most of the indicators were obtained from the psychiatric informative system or from the Direction of the MHD. Moreover, specific research was carried out on the clinical records and on representative patient samples. Furthermore, for 14 indicators, there was requested an assessment by the part of “multidisciplinary” or “specialistic” focus groups who then attributed a score according to a defined “ad hoc” scale. Results – According to the data obtained, although the mental health services seem to care about the physical condition of their patients, they do not routinely examine principle parameters such as blood pressure, glycaemia etc., and collaboration with general practitioners is often complex or not uniformly practiced. Most psychiatrists and psychologists possess the basic communication skills but not enough competences in cognitive-behavioural treatments; such treatments, and every other form of structured individual psychotherapy, are seldom carried out and seem to have become marginal activities within the Services. Also family psycho-educational interventions are under-used. The Services are very active in the care of multi-problem schizophrenia patients, who make up a large percentage (almost a quarter, on average) of the patients in their care. These patients are offered specific and integrated treatment plans with the involvement of other health services and social agencies operating in the territory. The strategies adopted by the services for the pharmacological treatment in the prevention of relapses and for patients with frequent crises or with treatment-resistant schizophrenia are all in line with the NICE recommendations. Finally, the Services promote activities of vocational training and supported employment, but the outcomes of these are often unsatisfactory. Conclusions – The results of the study show a picture of the Italian mental health services with bright yet also dark areas as regards recovery promotion activities. The Services seem to guarantee adequate pharmacological evidence-based treatments, an integrated assistance and good management of multi-problem patients. They have difficulty, however, with respect to the monitoring of the physical health of the patients, psychotherapeutic activities, including those for families, and the promotion of supported employment. Moreover, they still show problems regarding the structuring and formalizing of care processes. To improve this situation, they should make greater use of professional guidelines, protocols and written procedures.

Declaration of Interest: None.

Keywords

clinical guidelinesschizophreniarecovery of patients with severe mental illnessquality of care evaluationcommunity mental health services
Type
Original Articles
Information
Epidemiology and Psychiatric Sciences , Volume 17 , Issue 4 , December 2008 , pp. 331 - 348
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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