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Outcome of community-based rehabilitation program for people with mental illness who are considered difficult to treat

Angelo Barbato, MD, et al.

Figure. Illness severity assessed by Health of the Nation Outcome Scales (HoNOS) and social functioning by Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment Scale (SOFAS) at baseline, 6, 12, and 18 months.

This observational study investigated the outcomes of a community-based rehabilitation program for people with mental illness who were considered treatment failures by psychiatric professionals in Milan, Italy. The results show that very isolated people with mental illness who had poor interpersonal relationships gained some advantages from this rehabilitation program that was based on a close personal one-to-one relationship with a key worker, although most patients remained disabled at the end of the program. The main advantage was increased participation in community activities. However, the program duration may have been inadequate for producing greater improvement.


Volume 44 Number 6, 2007
Pages 775 — 784

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