Community compulsion in Scotland: a descriptive analysis

Outpatient commitment in mental health services from a municipal view

BACKGROUND

Outpatient commitment (OC) is a legal decision for compulsory mental health care when the patient stays in his or her own home. Municipal health-care workers have a key role for patients with OC decision, but little is known about how the legislation system with OC works from the municipality's point of view.

METHOD

The present study has a quantitative descriptive design using an electronic questionnaire sent to health-care workers in the municipalities that participated. The study included health-care workers from the mental health services in two counties in Norway who have experience with psychosis and OC decisions.

RESULTS

There were 230 people who received the questionnaire. The sample consisted of various health professionals from both small and large municipalities.The results show which tasks they have in follow-up of patients in the municipalities.

CONCLUSION

From the municipality's point of view, there are no significant differences in follow-up for patients with or without an OC decision, apart from conversations about medication. An individual plan is rarely used to facilitate follow-up, although this is the statutory right of patients with OC decisions. The health-care workers lack knowledge and education about the OC scheme. The cooperation between municipalities and the specialist health-care services is not clearly defined.

Community treatment orders and reduced time in hospital: a nationwide study, 2007-2012

Aims and method Community treatment orders (CTOs) were introduced in Scotland in 2005, but are controversial owing to a lack of supportive randomised evidence. The non-randomised studies provide mixed results on their efficacy and utility. We aimed to examine hospital bed day usage across Scotland both before and after CTOs were initiated in a national cohort of patients, spanning 5 years. Results In total, 1558 individuals who were subject to a CTO between 2007 and 2012, of whom 63% were male, were included. After CTO initiation the number of hospital bed days fell, on average, from 66 to 39 per annum per patient. Those with a longer psychiatric history appeared to benefit more from a CTO, in terms of reduced time in hospital. Clinical implications Our data offer cautious support for the use of CTOs in routine practice, in terms of reducing time spent in psychiatric hospital. This finding is balanced by the more rigorous randomised studies which do not find any benefit to CTOs.

Naturalistic outcomes of community treatment orders: antipsychotic long-acting injections versus oral medication

BACKGROUND

Community treatment orders (CTOs) are initiated to compel the patient in the community to take part in a management plan, of which medication is often a part. CTOs were introduced in 2008, in England and Wales. We evaluated naturalistic outcomes of CTOs, according to the antipsychotic formulation prescribed at CTO initiation.

METHODS

A cohort study with prospective consecutive sampling and 1-year follow-up was conducted in a large mental health trust in South London. Measures included: demographics, psychotropics and CTO outcomes. Comparison groups were long-acting injection (LAI) versus oral formulations only, for the primary outcomes of time to CTO cessation in days and time to first hospital admission in days, whilst the CTO remained active.

RESULTS

For the 188 included patients, the CTO ceased within 1 year, either due to revocation (22.3%), discharge (28.1%) or lapse (19.7%). The CTO was renewed at 6 months for 92 (48.9%) patients, and then 56 (29.8%) were renewed again at 12 months. The antipsychotic formulation at CTO initiation was more likely to be LAI (60.6%) than oral (39.4%). Time to CTO cessation was longer for LAI than oral (median 251 versus 182 days, p = 0.030). A total of 54 patients experienced at least one admission; there was no difference between groups by drug formulation (oral 28.4% versus LAI 28.9%, p = 0.933). The mean time to first admission was 147.1 days and did not differ by formulation.

CONCLUSIONS

CTO duration was longer for those prescribed an antipsychotic LAI at CTO initiation, although the time to first admission and number of admissions did not differ between groups. CTOs not only compel treatment, but bind services to the patient, resulting in more intensive follow up. Whether enhanced treatment, via oral or LAI and enabled by the CTO, translates into improved clinical outcomes is yet to be determined.