Illness management and recovery: a review of the research

Illness management is a broad set of strategies designed to help individuals with serious mental illness collaborate with professionals, reduce their susceptibility to the illness, and cope effectively with their symptoms. Recovery occurs when people with mental illness discover, or rediscover, their strengths and abilities for pursuing personal goals and develop a sense of identity that allows them to grow beyond their mental illness. The authors discuss the concept of recovery from psychiatric disorders and then review research on professional-based programs for helping people manage their mental illness. Research on illness management for persons with severe mental illness, including 40 randomized controlled studies, indicates that psychoeducation improves people's knowledge of mental illness; that behavioral tailoring helps people take medication as prescribed; that relapse prevention programs reduce symptom relapses and rehospitalizations; and that coping skills training using cognitive-behavioral techniques reduces the severity and distress of persistent symptoms. The authors discuss the implementation and dissemination of illness management programs from the perspectives of mental health administrators, program directors, people with a psychiatric illness, and family members.     

Cognitive training and supported employment for persons with severe mental illness: one-year results from a randomized controlled trial

This study examined the effectiveness of cognitive training (the Thinking Skills for Work Program) for improving competitive employment outcomes in persons with severe mental illness who have a history of job failure. Forty-four clients receiving services at 2 inner-city community mental health agencies were randomly assigned (within each site) to receive either cognitive training and supported employment (CT + SE) or supported employment only (SE Only). Retention in the CT + SE program was high (91%). Baseline to 3-month assessments showed significantly greater improvements in neurocognitive functioning, depression, and autistic preoccupation on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale for the CT + SE set compared to the SE Only group. Employment outcomes over 1 year showed that clients who received CT + SE were significantly more likely to work (69.6 versus 4.8%, respectively), worked more jobs, worked more hours, and earned more wages than clients with SE Only. The findings provide support for the feasibility of implementing the Thinking Skills for Work Program in the context of supported employment and its beneficial effects on cognitive functioning and competitive employment in persons with severe mental illness.     

Psychosocial treatment for first-episode psychosis: a research update

OBJECTIVE: This article reviews research on psychosocial treatment for first-episode psychosis. METHOD: PsycINFO and MEDLINE were systematically searched for studies that evaluated psychosocial interventions for first-episode psychosis. RESULTS: Comprehensive (i.e., multielement) treatment approaches show promise in reducing symptoms and hospital readmissions, as well as improving functional outcomes, although few rigorously controlled trials have been conducted. Individual cognitive behavior therapy has shown modest efficacy in reducing symptoms, assisting individuals in adjusting to their illness, and improving subjective quality of life, but it has shown minimal efficacy in reducing relapse. Some controlled research supports the benefits of family interventions, while less controlled research has evaluated group interventions. CONCLUSIONS: Adjunctive psychosocial interventions early in psychosis may be beneficial across a variety of domains and can assist with symptomatic and functional recovery. More randomized, controlled trials are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of these interventions, particularly for multielement, group, and family treatments.     

Supportive therapy for schizophrenia: possible mechanisms and implications for adjunctive psychosocial treatments

This article posits that the positive findings for supportive therapy (ST) in recent trials may indicate an important but undervalued aspect of psychosocial interventions for schizophrenia. In developing this thesis, we consider the possible mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of ST observed in recent trials of cognitive behavioral therapy for schizophrenia. We place this evidence in the context of a review of psychological models of mental health, the therapeutic alliance, and research on social cognition and social support in schizophrenia. We conclude this article by describing a new theoretically driven intervention for schizophrenia, functional cognitive-behavioral therapy (FCBT), which improves functional outcomes by integrating evidence-based advances in cognitive behavioral therapy with the strengths of ST approaches.     

Enhanced Skills Training and Health Care Management for Older Persons with Severe Mental Illness

This report describes a combined skills training (ST) and health management (HM) intervention for older adults with severe mental illness (SMI) and one-year pilot study outcomes. Findings are reported for twelve older persons with SMI (age 60+) who received ST+HM and twelve who received only HM. ST addressed interpersonal and independent living skills. HM included promotion of preventive health care. ST+HM was associated with improved social functioning and independent living skills, whereas functioning remained constant or declined for the HM only group. Both groups receiving HM demonstrated increased use of preventive health services and identification of previously undetected medical disorders.     

The effects of a documentary film about schizophrenia on psychiatric stigma

This study examined whether viewing a documentary that depicts individuals with schizophrenia can reduce psychiatric stigma. One hundred and sixty-three individuals were randomly assigned to one of four conditions: no documentary film, documentary about polar bears, documentary about fears of being overweight, and documentary about schizophrenia. Participants also completed a battery of tasks assessing attitudes toward persons with schizophrenia, attributions about the disorder, and intentions to interact with individuals with schizophrenia. The findings showed that compared to the other experimental conditions, the documentary about schizophrenia resulted in more benign attributions about schizophrenia (e.g., less likely to blame individuals with schizophrenia for the disorder) but did not change general attitudes about schizophrenia (e.g., perceived dangerousness). The film also did not increase participants' intentions to interact with persons with schizophrenia. These findings could not be attributed to mood changes associated with the film or how much participants liked the film. The findings provide partial support for the hypothesis that a media depiction of persons with schizophrenia can reduce stigma.     

Moving assertive community treatment into standard practice

This article describes the assertive community treatment model of comprehensive community-based psychiatric care for persons with severe mental illness and discusses issues pertaining to implementation of the model. The assertive community treatment model has been the subject of more than 25 randomized controlled trials. Research has shown that this type of program is effective in reducing hospitalization, is no more expensive than traditional care, and is more satisfactory to consumers and their families than standard care. Despite evidence of the efficacy of assertive community treatment, it is not uniformly available to the individuals who might benefit from it.     

Effects of co-occurring disorders on employment outcomes in a multisite randomized study of supported employment for people with severe mental illness

Effects of co-occurring disorders on work outcomes were explored among individuals with severe mental illness who were participating in a multisite randomized study of supported employment. At seven sites, 1,273 people were randomly assigned to an experimental supported employment program or a control condition and followed for 2 years. Multivariate regression analysis examined work outcomes including earnings, hours worked, and competitive employment, as well as whether psychiatric disability was disclosed to coworkers and supervisors. Individuals with any comorbidity had lower earnings and were less likely to work competitively. Those with physical comorbidities had lower earnings, worked fewer hours, and were less likely to work competitively. Disclosure was more likely among those with both cognitive and physical comorbidities, as well as those with learning disabilities. Competitive employment was less likely among those with intellectual disability, visual impair ment, and human immunodeficiency virus/acquired immuno-deficiency syndrome. The experimental condition was positively related to all outcomes except disclosure. The results suggest that, with some exceptions, comorbidities affect employment outcomes, requiring tailored services and supports to promote vocational success.     

罗格列酮单用或者与阿伐他汀联合使用对于2型糖尿病患者心血管疾病的非传统标志物的作用

背景和目的:罗格列酮与阿伐他汀联合疗法已经被证实对于2型糖尿病患者的血糖控制以及脂质水平都有益处。本试验将通过检测罗格列酮与阿伐他汀联合疗法对于2型糖尿病患者的生物标记水平的作用来研究该联合疗法对血管炎的作用。方法:30例患有2型糖尿病和高脂血症的患者被纳入治疗。对这些患者给予罗格列酮单一疗法4mg/d,持续3个月,然后在接下来的3个月中给予这些患者阿伐他汀10mg/d作为联合疗法。在研究开始时,罗格列酮单一疗法之后以及罗格列酮与阿伐他汀联合治疗之后测量炎性生物标记物,包括高敏C-反应蛋白(hs-CRP)、基质金属蛋白酶9(MMP…