Assessment of the needs and clinical parameters in patients with mental disorders residing in forensic psychiatry wards with varying degrees of security.

Abstract

SummaryAims: The aim of the study was to compare patients treated in "court psychiatric wards" of low and medium security in terms of their needs, severity of psychopathological symptoms, subjective assessment of quality of life and satisfaction with treatment. Method:The study was conducted at the Regional Mental Hospital in Lubiąż, Poland. It involved patients interned at two low security forensic psychiatric wards and one medium security ward. 93 male patients were assessed. The following research tools were used: Camberwell Assessment of Need -Forensic Version (CAN-FOR), a sociodemographic and clinical data questionnaire, Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), Client's Assessment of Treatment (CAT) scale, and the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life (MANSA) scale.Results: Patients at the medium security ward reported greater overall needs and a greater number of unmet needs. The overall severity of psychopathology, including deficits and positive symptoms, was higher among patients in low security wards. Discussion:Results indicate that medical care on wards with low and medium security is at a similar level. Individuals are committed to medium security wards based not on their mental disorder but rather on the nature of the offense they had committed, which in this case is more serious than that of individuals directed to low security wards. Conclusions:The services provided in forensic psychiatric wards, especially in medium security wards, do not sufficiently meet the needs of patients. forensic psychiatry, patients' needs, mental disordersMental disorders are associated with the greatest adverse effect on the social functioning and quality of life of patients. The patient's mental state as well as their needs is influenced not only by their mental condition, but also by factors they have to cope with at the hospital. As part of psychiatric hospital treatment in Poland, medical services may be provided in day hospitals, stationary or forensic wards. Daily and stationary psychiatric wards differ in many respects from forensic psychiatric wards. Wards which implement security measures are organized as psychiatric units with low, medium and high security.

Measuring the quality of life of incarcerated individuals

“…The WHOQOL-BREF is the most commonly used validated generic instrument in published studies involving incarcerated populations (e.g. O'Flynn et al, 2018;Schel et al, 2017;De Smet et al, 2017;Combalbert et al, 2017;Vorstenbosch et al, 2014;Pham and Saloppé, 2013;Carcedo et al, 2011;Ammar et al, 2011;Zwemstra et al, 2009;Saloppé and Pham, 2006;Mooney et al, 2002), followed by the Lancashire QoL Profile ( Van Nieuwenhuizen et al, 2001), administered in a 45-min long interview (Swinton et al, 1999;Van Nieuwenhuizen and Nijman, 2009;Bouman et al, 2009;Bouman et al, 2008;Trizna and Adamowski, 2016b), and its abbreviated version, the Manchester Short Assessment of QoL (Trizna and Adamowski, 2016a). Among disease-specific instruments intended broadly for mental health patients, the most commonly used is Lehman's QoL interview (Lehman, 1988).…”