Search

Background: Despite the steadily escalating psychological and economic burden of depression, there is a lack of evidence for the effectiveness of available interventions on functioning areas beyond symptomatology. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to give an insight into the current measurement of treatment effectiveness in depression and to provide recommendations for its improvement. Materials and Methods: The study was based on a multi-informant approach, comparing data from a systematic literature review, an expert survey with representatives from clinical practice (130), and qualitative interviews with patients (11) experiencing depression. Results: Current literature places emphasis on symptomatic outcomes and neglects other domains of functioning, whereas clinicians and depressed patients highlight the importance of both. Interpersonal relationships, recreation and daily activities, communication, social participation, work difficulties were identified as being crucial for recovery. Personal factors, neglected by the literature, such as self-efficacy were introduced by experts and patients. Furthermore, clinicians and patients identified a number of differences regarding the areas improved by psychotherapeutic or pharmacological interventions that were not addressed by the pertinent literature. Conclusion: Creation of a new cross-nationally applicable measure of psychosocial functioning, broader remission criteria, report of domain-specific information, and a personalized approach in treatment decision-making are the first crucial steps needed for the improvement of the measurement of treatment effectiveness in depression. A better measurement will facilitate the clinical decision making and answer the escalating burden of depression.

Hintergrund: Das Internet spielt heutzutage in Gesundheitsfragen eine große Rolle. Fast alle Internetnutzer greifen im Zusammenhang mit Erkrankungen auf Onlineangebote zurück, um beispielsweise Informationen über Krankheitsbilder oder Medikamente zu suchen. Speziell für den Bereich seelische Gesundheit verfügt das Internet darüber hinaus noch über weiteres Potential: Mit der Entwicklung von Online-Programmen wurden in den letzten Jahren neue Behandlungsmöglichkeiten für psychische Erkrankungen geschaffen. Diese verwenden die multimedialen Möglichkeiten des Internets zu therapeutischen Zwecken und konnten in zahlreichen Studien vielversprechende Ergebnisse zeigen. Für die Nutzung der Programme sind dabei regelmäßiger Internetzugang und Routine im Umgang mit unterschiedlichen Internetfunktionen notwendig - insbesondere mit sozialen Medien. Ausmaß und Muster der Internetnutzung psychiatrischer Patienten im Zusammenhang mit ihrer Erkrankung sind jedoch bislang kaum erforscht. Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit ist es, das erkrankungsbezogene Internetnutzungsverhalten dieser Patientengruppe zu erfassen und zu analysieren. Methode: Patienten aller Stationen und Ambulanzen der Klinik und Poliklinik für Psychiatrie und Psychotherapie des Universitätsklinikums Leipzig wurden mit Hilfe eines Fragebogens zu ihrem Internetnutzungsverhalten befragt. Anhand von 29 Items wurden soziodemographische Daten, das allgemeine Internetnutzungsverhalten und die erkrankungsbezogene Internetnutzung (mental-health related Internet use) erfasst. Die Datenanalyse beinhaltete die Bestimmung von Häufigkeiten und Gruppenvergleiche. Hierzu wurde vornehmlich der Chi-Quadrat-Test verwendet. Ergebnisse: 337 Patienten nahmen an der Studie teil. 79.5% von ihnen waren Internetnutzer und wurden in Abhängigkeit von ihrer wöchentlichen Nutzungsdauer in die Subgruppen Wenig-, Mittel- und Vielnutzer eingeteilt. Soziale Medien wurden von weniger als der Hälfte der Nutzer verwendet: Soziale Netzwerke (47.8%), Foren (

Die Arbeit befasst sich mit der Internetnutzung von psychiatrischen Patienten. Das Angebot an Therapien für Patienten mit psychiatrischen Erkrankungen steigt seit Jahren. Auch die Menge an Informationen, welche vor allem online zu bekommen sind, wird immer größer. Allerdings gibt es nur wenige Informationen zur Internetnutzung von psychiatrischen Patienten im Vergleich zur Gesamtbevölkerung. Sind psychiatrische Patienten bezüglich Zugang zum Internet und Nutzung von Internetinformationen und -therapien benachteiligt?

Background: The Internet is of great importance in today’s health sector, as most Internet users utilize online functions for health related purposes. Concerning the mental health care sector, little data exist about the Internet use of psychiatric patients. It is the scope of this current study to analyze the quantity and pattern of Internet usage among mental health patients. Methods: Patients from all services of the Department of Psychiatry at a university hospital were surveyed by completing a 29-item questionnaire. The data analysis included evaluation of frequencies, as well as group comparisons. Results: 337 patients participated in the survey, of whom 79.5% were Internet users. Social media was utilized by less than half of the users: social networks (47.8%), forums (19.4%), chats (18.7%), blogs (12.3%). 70.9% used the Internet for mental health related reasons. The contents accessed by the patients included: information on mental disorders (57.8%), information on medication (43.7%), search for mental health services (38.8%), platforms with other patients (19.8%) and platforms with mental health professionals (17.2%). Differences in the pattern of use between users with low, medium and high frequency of Internet use were statistically significant for all entities of social media (p < 0.01), search for mental health services (p = 0.017) and usage of platforms with mental health professionals (p = 0. 048). The analysis of differences in Internet use depending on the participants’ type of mental disorder revealed no statistically significant differences, with one exception. Regarding the Internet’s role in mental health care, the participants showed differing opinions: 36.2% believe that the Internet has or may have helped them in coping with their mental disorder, while 38.4% stated the contrary. Conclusions: Most psychiatric patients are Internet users. Mental health related Internet use is common among patients, mainly for information seeking. The use of so

Background: Relapses and, subsequently, readmissions are common in patients with schizophrenia. Psychoeducation has been shown to reduce the number and duration of readmissions. Yet, only little more than 20% of psychiatric patients in German speaking countries receive psychoeducation. Among other reasons, costs may be considered too high by hospitals. The objective of the present study was to test the feasibility of a new cost-efficient approach in the psychoeducation of patients with schizophrenia. In this study, films were used to impart knowledge about the illness to inpatients.

Background: The Internet is of great importance in today’s health sector, as most Internet users utilize online functions for health related purposes. Concerning the mental health care sector, little data exist about the Internet use of psychiatric patients. It is the scope of this current study to analyze the quantity and pattern of Internet usage among mental health patients. Methods: Patients from all services of the Department of Psychiatry at a university hospital were surveyed by completing a 29-item questionnaire. The data analysis included evaluation of frequencies, as well as group comparisons. Results: 337 patients participated in the survey, of whom 79.5% were Internet users. Social media was utilized by less than half of the users: social networks (47.8%), forums (19.4%), chats (18.7%), blogs (12.3%). 70.9% used the Internet for mental health related reasons. The contents accessed by the patients included: information on mental disorders (57.8%), information on medication (43.7%), search for mental health services (38.8%), platforms with other patients (19.8%) and platforms with mental health professionals (17.2%). Differences in the pattern of use between users with low, medium and high frequency of Internet use were statistically significant for all entities of social media (p < 0.01), search for mental health services (p = 0.017) and usage of platforms with mental health professionals (p = 0. 048). The analysis of differences in Internet use depending on the participants’ type of mental disorder revealed no statistically significant differences, with one exception. Regarding the Internet’s role in mental health care, the participants showed differing opinions: 36.2% believe that the Internet has or may have helped them in coping with their mental disorder, while 38.4% stated the contrary. Conclusions: Most psychiatric patients are Internet users. Mental health related Internet use is common among patients, mainly for information seeking. The use of so