Effectiveness of psychoeducational intervention for rural Chinese families experiencing schizophrenia: A randomised controlled trial

• Published in: Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology Vol. 38; no. 2; pp. 69 - 75
• Main Authors: RAN, Mao-Sheng, XIANG, Meng-Ze, LAI-WAN CHAN, Cecilia, LEFF, Julian, SIMPSON, Peggy, HUANG, Ming-Sheng, SHAN, You-He, LI, Si-Gan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Heidelberg Springer 01.02.2003; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adult; Antipsychotic Agents - therapeutic use; Biological and medical sciences; Caregivers - education; Caregivers - psychology; China; Cluster Analysis; Combined Modality Therapy; Community Mental Health Services - standards; Female; Health Education - methods; Health Education - standards; Health Services Research; Humans; Male; Medical sciences; Mental health; Middle Aged; Organization of mental health. Health systems; Program Evaluation; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Rural Population; Schizophrenia - drug therapy; Schizophrenia - therapy; Social psychiatry. Ethnopsychiatry; Treatment Outcome; Asia; China; Social environment; Human; Rural environment; Treatment efficiency; Mental health; Schizophrenia; Controlled therapeutic trial; Health service; Educational schedule; Psychosis; Randomized design; community mental health; Family environment; Treatment compliance; psychoeducation; family; Public health
• ISSN: 0933-7954; 1433-9285
• DOI: 10.1007/s00127-003-0601-z

The aim of this study was to explore the characteristics and efficacy of psychoeducational family intervention for persons with schizophrenia in rural China. A cluster randomised controlled trial of psychoeducational family intervention for families experiencing schizophrenia (three groups, 326 cases) was conducted in Xinjin County, Chengdu. Treatment groups consisted of family intervention and medication, medication alone, and a control. The results showed a gain in knowledge, a change in the relatives' caring attitudes towards the patients, and an increase in treatment compliance in the psychoeducational family intervention group (p < 0.05, 0.001). Most importantly, the relapse rate over 9 months in this group (16.3 %) was half that of the drug-only group (37.8 %), and just over one-quarter of that of the control group (61.5 %) (p < 0.05). Antipsychotic drug treatment and families' attitudes towards patients after the 9-month follow-up were significantly associated with clinical outcome (p < 0.05). In rural China, family intervention should focus on improving the relatives' recognition of illness, the caring attitude towards the patients, treatment compliance, relapse prevention, and the training of the patients' social functioning. This trial, one of the largest in the literature, has shown that psychoeducational family intervention is effective and suitable for psychiatric rehabilitation in Chinese rural communities.