Gama Marques J, Chesi D, Coelho RO, Castanheira Costa I, Santos Antão C, Pedro CA, Silva Santos P, Xavier Diogo J. Homeless Outreach Psychiatric Engagement for Lisboa (HOPE 4 Lisboa): One year of marontology, and one John Doe living with Diogenes syndrome.
Int J Soc Psychiatry 2024;
70:227-230. [PMID:
37345729 PMCID:
PMC10860358 DOI:
10.1177/00207640231179322]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/23/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND
In Europe, psychiatric disorders seem to affect up to 50% of the homeless. In Portugal there were, at a certain time, circa 3,396 homeless people, half living in the capital city, Lisboa.
AIMS
The Homeless Outreach Psychiatric Engagement for Lisboa (HOPE 4 Lisboa) was created, in January 1st 2022, as a collaboration including staff from the local state asylum, medical school and town hall in Lisboa, Portugal, in order to provide better treatment for the super difficult cases of psychiatric patients living homeless in Lisboa.
METHOD
During 2022, the HOPE 4 team made night rounds, every 15 days on Tuesday's night (20:30 to 23:30) trying to reach, at least, one dozen of homeless psychiatric patients, previously identified.
RESULTS
The HOPE 4 Lisboa interviewed 101 patients (53.4%) out of the 189 programed visits. From this group, 72 (72%) had already a previous psychiatric diagnosis. From those 101 patients, reports for 47 (47%) were sent for an eventual compulsory psychiatric assessment. From those 47 only 21 patients (21%) were admitted in the psychiatry ward. Finally we discuss the most super difficult patient we found, as a small case report: a John Doe living in complete Diogenes syndrome.
CONCLUSIONS
there are still a few psychiatrists interested in treating homeless people completely or partially out of the classic mental health care systems. Some claim to be doing interstitial psychiatry, others street psychiatry, but we could also call it marontology.
Collapse