A factor analytic comparison of three commonly used depression scales (HAMD, MADRS, BDI) in a large sample of depressed inpatients.

BACKGROUND: Quantifying depression mainly relies on the use of depression scales, and understanding their factor structure is crucial for evaluating their validity. METHODS: This post-hoc analysis utilized prospectively collected data from a naturalistic study of 1014 inpatients with major depression. Confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses were performed to test the psychometric abilities of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale, the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale, and the self-rated Beck Depression Inventory. A combined factor analysis was also conducted including all items of all scales. RESULTS: All three scales showed good to very good internal consistency. The HAMD-17 had four factors: an "anxiety" factor, a "depression" factor, an "insomnia" factor, and a "somatic" factor. The MADRS also had four factors: a "sadness" factor, a neurovegetative factor, a "detachment" factor and a "negative thoughts" factor, while the BDI had three factors: a "negative attitude towards self" factor, a "performance impairment" factor, and a "somatic" factor. The combined factor analysis suggested that self-ratings might reflect a distinct illness dimension within major depression. CONCLUSIONS: The factors obtained in this study are comparable to those found in previous research. Self and clinician ratings are complementary and not redundant, highlighting the importance of using multiple measures to quantify depression.

The transformation of masculinity orientations and work-related attitudes in men treated for depression (TRANSMODE): study protocol for a mixed-methods observational study.

BACKGROUND: Masculinity norms play a crucial role in men's help-seeking behaviors, service-use, and coping strategies for depression. While previous studies provided evidence for the association between gender role orientations, work related attitudes, stigmatization of men with depression and depressive symptoms, it remains unclear to what extent gender role orientations change over time and whether psychiatric and psychotherapeutic treatment have an impact on these transformations. Additionally, the role of partners in supporting depressed men and the impact of dyadic coping on these processes have not been explored. The aim of this study is to investigate how masculinity orientations and work-related attitudes change over time in men treated for depression, and to examine the role of their partners and dyadic coping in these transformation processes. METHODS: TRANSMODE is a prospective longitudinal mixed-methods study investigating the transformation of masculinity orientations and work-related attitudes in men treated for depression between the ages of 18 and 65 from different settings in Germany. The study will recruit 350 men from various settings for quantitative analysis. By applying a latent transition analysis, the primary outcome are changes in masculine orientations and work-related attitudes over time, measured at four times (t0, t1, t2, t3) with intervals of 6 months. Qualitative interview with a subsample of depressed men selected using latent profile analysis, will be conducted between t0 and t1 (a1) with a follow-up of 12 months (a2). In addition, qualitative interviews with the partners of depressed men will be conducted between t2 and t3 (p1). Qualitative data will be analysed using qualitative structured content analysis. DISCUSSION: A comprehensive understanding of the transformation processes of masculinity orientations over time including the impact of psychiatric/psychotherapeutic treatment and the role of partners can lead to the development of gender-sensitive depression treatment tailored to the unique needs of men with depression. Thus, the study can promote more effective and successful treatment outcomes and further contribute to reducing the stigma surrounding mental health issues among men and encourage them for mental health service use. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This study is registered in the German Clinical Trail Register (DRKS) and the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform (ICTRP) under registration number DRKS00031065 (Date of registration 06 February 2023).

Informing the development of a decision aid: Expectations and wishes from service users and psychiatrists towards a decision aid for antipsychotics in the inpatient setting.

OBJECTIVES: Decision aids (DAs) are promising tools to foster evidence-based shared decision-making between practitioners and service users. Nevertheless, it is still obscure how an evidence-based DA for people with severe mental illness, especially psychosis, should look in an inpatient treatment setting to be useful and feasible. Therefore, we conducted focus groups with psychiatrists and service users to collect and assess their expectations and wishes regarding an evidence-based DA. From these findings, we derived immediate recommendations for the future development of DAs. METHODS: We held two group interviews with service users (n = 8) and three group interviews with psychiatrists (n = 10). We used an open, large-scale topic guide. First, we presented data from a current meta-analysis on antipsychotics to the interviewees and, in a second step, asked for their expectations and wishes towards a DA that integrates these data. RESULTS: Our thematic analysis revealed six key themes addressed by the respondents: (1) general considerations on the importance and usefulness of such a DA, (2) critical comments on psychiatry and psychopharmacotherapy, (3) communicative prerequisites for the use of a DA, (4) form and content of the DA, (5) data input, data processing and output as well as (6) application of the DA and possible obstacles. CONCLUSIONS: Participants identified several important features for the development of DAs for selecting antipsychotics in inpatient psychiatric treatment. The digital format was met with the greatest approval. Especially the adaptability to different needs, users and psychopathologies and the possibility to outsource information dissemination via app seemed to be a decisive convincing argument. Further research is required to test specific features of DAs to be developed in clinical settings.

[Development of a Return-to-work Intervention for Psychiatric Inpatients]. / Entwicklung einer Intervention zur Unterstützung von stationär-psychiatrisch behandelten Patienten bei der Rückkehr an den Arbeitsplatz im Rahmen der RETURN-Studie.

OBJECTIVE: Patients with mental illnesses often face difficulties when returning to workplace after an episode of inpatient treatment. Available resources intended to support the return-to-work process are often not used. It was the aim of the present study to develop an intervention that facilitates the implementation of patient support at the interface of in- and outpatient care. METHODS: We used a structured development process for the establishment of a return-to-work intervention for psychiatric inpatients. RESULTS: The intervention consisted of the use of return-to-work experts who worked on the basis of a manual. In clearly defined modules, patients were given information on social law basics and details of the return process. Difficult situations (e. g., dealing with the disclosure of the diagnosis, return interview) were discussed and rehearsed. After discharge, further care took place, above all with regard to experiences on the first working day, accompaniment to discussions with the employer and support with any other upcoming difficulties. CONCLUSION: The results of the ongoing study will show whether the chosen approach actually yields the expected results, namely an improvement of the return-to-work process.

[Public mental health and patient autonomy-an area of conflict?] / Public Mental Health und Patientenautonomie ­ ein Spannungsfeld?

Public mental health (PMH) interventions aim to promote and improve the well-being of members of a society. PMH is based on a normative understanding of what well-being is and what factors contribute to it. Without necessarily disclosing it, measures of a PMH program may affect the autonomy of individuals if their personal perceptions regarding their own individual well-being differ from PMH's prescriptions for well-being oriented toward societal goals. In this paper, we discuss this potential tension between the possible goals of PMH and those of the addressees.

[Patient Preferences for Exercise Therapy in People with Severe Mental Illness in Germany]. / Der subjektive Stellenwert von Bewegungs- und Sporttherapie bei Menschen mit schwerer psychischer Erkrankung in Deutschland.

PURPOSE: Assessing the experience with and the attitudes towards exercise therapy in persons with severe mental illness (SMI). Furthermore, potential variables of high preference towards exercise therapy are investigated. METHODS: Cross-sectional observational study of SMI patients aged between 18 and 65 years (n=385). Patients were interviewed by trained staff using standardised instruments. Potential variables were analysed using a hierarchic binary logistic regression model. RESULTS: 84,4% of SMI patients had a high preference for exercise therapy; of these, 44,1% exercised regularly. Among patients with severe mental illness especially a higher value in the GAF-assessment (p=0,041) and living in a metropolitan area (p=0,011) predict a high preference for exercise therapy. CONCLUSION: Most of the patients with severe mental illness interviewed in this study place a surprisingly high value on sports and exercise therapy. Due to the increasing evidence with regard to positive effects of these therapies, it may be an excellent starting point to expand sports and exercise therapy as part of a comprehensive treatment plan. At the same time, strategies for everyday transfer need to be implemented more rigorously.

Evidence-based Shared-Decision-Making Assistant (SDM-assistant) for choosing antipsychotics: protocol of a cluster-randomized trial in hospitalized patients with schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Choosing an antipsychotic medication is an important medical decision in the treatment of schizophrenia. This decision requires risk-benefit assessments of antipsychotics, and thus, shared-decision making between physician and patients is strongly encouraged. Although the efficacy and side-effect profiles of antipsychotics are well-established, there is no clear framework for the communication of the evidence between physicians and patients. For this reason, we developed an evidence-based shared-decision making assistant (SDM-assistant) that presents high-quality evidence from network meta-analysis on the efficacy and side-effect profile of antipsychotics and can be used as a basis for shared-decision making between physicians and patients when selecting antipsychotic medications. METHODS: The planned matched-pair cluster-randomised trial will be conducted in acute psychiatric wards (n = 14 wards planned) and will include adult inpatients with schizophrenia or schizophrenia-like disorders (N = 252 participants planned). On the intervention wards, patients and their treating physicians will use the SDM-assistant, whenever a decision on choosing an antipsychotic is warranted. On the control wards, antipsychotics will be chosen according to treatment-as-usual. The primary outcome will be patients' perceived involvement in the decision-making during the inpatient stay as measured with the SDM-Q-9. We will also assess therapeutic alliance, symptom severity, side-effects, treatment satisfaction, adherence, quality of life, functioning and rehospitalizations as secondary outcomes. Outcomes could be analysed at discharge and at follow-up after three months from discharge. The analysis will be conducted per-protocol using mixed-effects linear regression models for continuous outcomes and logistic regression models using generalised estimating equations for dichotomous outcomes. Barriers and facilitators in the implementation of the intervention will also be examined using a qualitative content analysis. DISCUSSION: This is the first trial to examine a decision assistant specifically designed to facilitate shared-decision making for choosing antipsychotic medications, i.e., SDM-assistant, in acutely ill inpatients with schizophrenia. If the intervention can be successfully implemented, SDM-assistant could advance evidence-based medicine in schizophrenia by putting medical evidence on antipsychotics into the context of patient preferences and values. This could subsequently lead to a higher involvement of the patients in decision-making and better therapy decisions. TRIAL REGISTRATION: German Clinical Trials Register (ID: DRKS00027316 , registration date 26.01.2022).

The role of migration in mental healthcare: treatment satisfaction and utilization.

Migration rates increase globally and require an adaption of national mental health services to the needs of persons with migration background. Therefore, we aimed to identify differences between persons with and without migratory background regarding (1) treatment satisfaction, (2) needed and received mental healthcare and (3) utilization of mental healthcare.In the context of a cross-sectional multicenter study, inpatients and day hospital patients of psychiatric settings in Southern Germany with severe affective and non-affective psychoses were included. Patients' satisfaction with and their use of mental healthcare services were assessed by VSSS-54 and CSSRI-EU; patients' needs were measured via CAN-EU.In total, 387 participants (migratory background: n = 72; 19%) provided sufficient responses for analyses. Migrant patients were more satisfied with the overall treatment in the past year compared to non-migrant patients. No differences between both groups were identified in met and unmet treatment needs and use of supply services (psychiatric, psychotherapeutic, and psychosocial treatment).Despite a comparable degree of met and unmet treatment needs and mental health service use among migrants and non-migrants, patients with migration background showed higher overall treatment satisfaction compared to non-migrants. The role of sociocultural and migrant-related factors may explain our findings.

[Inpatient equivalent home-treatment: an overview]. / Stationsäquivalente Behandlung: Ein Überblick zum Status quo.

Inpatient equivalent home-treatment (IEHT) was implemented in Germany in 2018. Persons with a mental disorder can be admitted to acute multiprofessional IEHT to avoid or shorten inpatient hospital treatment. Exclusion criteria are amongst others lack of consent of cohabitants or endangerment of self and others. Advantages of IEHT include normalization and reduction of stigma. Nevertheless, administrative requirements are high. While there is international evidence for home treatment and crisis resolution teams, there is still a lack of evidence for the concept of IEHT, although specific studies are currently being carried out (e.g. AktiV study financed by the Innovation Fund). Overall, IEHT is important for mental health services and should be further developed.

[Is the role of mental illness in suicide overestimated?] / Wird die Rolle von psychischen Erkrankungen beim Suizid überbewertet?

In the scientific literature, it is often said that 90% of all suicides are the consequences of a mental illness. Nevertheless, recent reports and comments cast doubt on this view and point out that such a limitation might hamper effective suicide prevention. In this overview we will outline and discuss important results on how often suicides are the consequence of mental illnesses and whether the association between mental illnesses and suicide might be overestimated.Mental illnesses and especially affective disorders increase the risk of suicide by 30 to 50 times. Nevertheless, they explain only a certain percentage of all suicides. Observational and treatment studies indicate that mental illness is only one factor of several that lead to suicide. Among other factors are relationship problems, drug abuse, severe somatic illnesses, job problems, financial worries or juridical threats.Suicidal behaviour is an indicator of deep unhappiness but not necessarily caused by a mental illness. Many persons with mental illnesses do not show suicidal behaviour. On the other hand, not all people who take their own lives have a mental illness. This has significant consequences for universal and indicated prevention of suicide.

Implementation, efficacy, costs and processes of inpatient equivalent home-treatment in German mental health care (AKtiV): protocol of a mixed-method, participatory, quasi-experimental trial.

BACKGROUND: Over the last decades, many high-income countries have successfully implemented assertive outreach mental health services for acute care. Despite evidence that these services entail several benefits for service users, Germany has lagged behind and has been slow in implementing outreach services. In 2018, a new law enabled national mental health care providers to implement team-based crisis intervention services on a regular basis, allowing for different forms of Inpatient Equivalent Home Treatment (IEHT). IEHT is similar to the internationally known Home Treatment or Crisis Resolution Teams. It provides acute psychiatric treatment at the user's home, similar to inpatient hospital treatment in terms of content, flexibility, and complexity. METHODS/DESIGN: The presented naturalistic, quasi-experimental cohort study will evaluate IEHT in ten hospitals running IEHT services in different German regions. Within a multi-method research approach, it will evaluate stakeholders' experiences of care, service use, efficacy, costs, treatment processes and implementation processes of IEHT from different perspectives. Quantitative surveys will be used to recruit 360 service users. Subsequently, 180 service users receiving IEHT will be compared with 180 matched statistical 'twins' receiving standard inpatient treatment. Assessments will take place at baseline as well as after 6 and 12 months. The primary outcome is the hospital re-admission rate within 12 months. Secondary outcomes include the combined readmission rate, total number of inpatient hospital days, treatment discontinuation rate, quality of life, psycho-social functioning, job integration, recovery, satisfaction with care, shared decision-making, and treatment costs. Additionally, the study will assess the burden of care and satisfaction with care among relatives or informal caregivers. A collaborative research team made up of researchers with and without lived experience of mental distress will conduct qualitative investigations with service users, caregivers and IEHT staff teams to explore critical ingredients and interactions between implementation processes, treatment processes, and outcomes from a stakeholder perspective. DISCUSSION: By integrating outcome, process and implementation research as well as different stakeholder perspectives and experiences in one study, this trial captures the various facets of IEHT as a special form of home treatment. Therefore, it allows for an adequate, comprehensive evaluation on different levels of this complex intervention. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Trial registrations: 1) German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS), DRKS000224769. Registered December 3rd 2020, https://www.drks.de/drks_web/setLocale_EN.do ; 2) ClinicalTrials.gov, Identifier: NCT0474550 . Registered February 9th 2021.

Employment status and desire for work in severe mental illness: results from an observational, cross-sectional study.

PURPOSE: People with a severe mental illness (SMI) are at particular risk of occupational exclusion. Among the approaches to occupational rehabilitation, supported employment (SE) has been proven to be the most effective. A requirement to enter SE-programs is that individuals must want to seek competitive employment. The aim of this work is to investigate the relationship between serious mental illness and the desire to work including potential predictors. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional observational study of patients with SMI aged 18-65 years (n = 397). Patients were interviewed by trained staff using standardised instruments. The relationship between potential predictors and a strong preference for employment were analysed using a hierarchic binary logistic regression model. RESULTS: Only about one-quarter (27.9%) of SMI patients is in competitive employment. Another quarter is unemployed (25.9%). Results show that the desire for competitive employment is strong among more than half of the SMI patients. Among the unemployed, two-thirds express a strong desire for work. These individuals are an ideal target group for SE interventions. Comorbid chronic physical illness, diagnosis, and the subjectively judged ability to work are associated with the desire for work. CONCLUSION: Our data confirm a substantial exclusion of individuals with SMI from the workforce. In general, care needs for workplace interventions are not being met and leave much room for improvement. In addition to employment status, the desire for work should be routinely assessed. STUDY REGISTRATION: The study was registered in the German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS) ( https://www.drks.de/drks_web/navigate.do?navigationId=trial.HTML&TRIAL_ID=DRKS00015801 ) and under the WHO-Platform "International Clinical Trials Registry Platform" (ICTRP) ( https://apps.who.int/trialsearch/Trial2.aspx?TrialID=DRKS00015801 ) under the registration number DRKS00015801 before the start of recruitment (Registration date: 21.02.2019).

[Peer Support: Utilization and Benefit in Severe Mental Illness - Results from an Observational, Cross-Sectional Study]. / Genesungsbegleitung: Inanspruchnahme und Nutzenbewertung aus Betroffenenperspektive ­ Ergebnisse einer Beobachtungsstudie.

OBJECTIVE: Peer support is playing an increasing role in the treatment of severely mentally ill people. International findings are available on its effectiveness. However, little is known about knowledge, use and benefit assessment in Germany. This paper addresses this question and presents results from an observational study with 10 participating clinics in southern Germany. METHODS: As part of the observational cross-sectional study with people with severe mental illness (IMPPETUS, N=359), sociodemographic and illness- and treatment-associated data were collected by trained study staff between March 2019 and September 2019. Binary logistic regression was used to analyse a possible association with peer support use. RESULTS: 38% (N=138) of respondents reported knowledge about the possibility of peer support; 15% (N=55) affirmed its use. Use of peer support varied across sites (between 6.5 and 37.5%) and was associated with household income. Significantly less frequent use of peer support was among those with high versus low household income (OR=0.20 [95% CI: 0.06-0.68], p=0.01). Of respondents with peer support use (N=55), 78% reported perceiving peer support to be helpful or highly helpful. DISCUSSION: Peer support not only proves to be effective under study conditions with regard to various outcomes, but is also assessed as beneficial under routine conditions in a defined care region by the majority of users. However, only a few respondents knew and used the possibility of peer support. CONCLUSION: In order to implement peer support more strongly, information about this kind of service should be provided more effectively and a dialogue about successful implementation experiences should be initiated on a regional level.

Return-to-work-experts for inpatient treatment of patients with mental illnesses- a proof-of-concept-study (RETURN): the study protocol.

BACKGROUND: Patients with mental illnesses often have massive difficulties returning to work after inpatient treatment at a psychiatric clinic and are often at risk of losing their jobs. The psychosocial support for this patient group at the interface of clinic/outpatient care is often insufficient. METHODS/DESIGN: The RETURN-study prospectively assesses and surveys 200 patients with mental disorders in a cluster randomized intervention study, i.e. treatment teams and patients from intervention wards receive a return-to-work (RTW) intervention. Patients in control wards obtain treatment as usual (TAU). Pairs of comparable wards (similar patient population, similar staff density) have been identified and then randomized for control and intervention (n = 14 for each condition). On intervention wards return-to-work experts (RTW experts) who focus treatment on the workplace-related needs of patients with mental illnesses have been established. These RTW experts ensure the use of available resources within the framework of work-related discharge management and should lead to a more successful return to the workplace. The days at work in the year after release will be evaluated in a mixed methods approach as well as the return rate in the year after release, disability days in the year after return, relapse rate after 12 months, cost-benefit ratio of the intervention, analysis of the predictors / barriers for a successful return to the workplace (e.g. psychopathology, cognition, stigma, social-psychiatric support, company support, etc.), possibilities to implement the concept of RTW experts in standard psychiatric care (TAU - treatment as usual), the impact of the RTW experts' approach on the treatment process in standard psychiatric care. DISCUSSION: This approach is already internationally established in the field of somatic rehabilitation and supported employment [Am J Psychiatry 171:1183-90, 2014; Lancet 370:1146-52, 2007; Cochrane Database Syst Rev, doi:10.1002/14651858.CD006237.pub3, 2014]; the innovative aspect of this project is to implement and evaluate it in standard psychiatric care in Germany. This project requires no new interventions to be developed and tested, as the techniques of the case manager/job coach is applied to the field of return to work. TRIAL REGISTRATION: The study was registered in Deutsches Register Klinische Studien searchable via its Meta-registry (http://apps.who.int/trialsearch/), Trial registration number: DRKS00016037, Date of registration: 21/12/2018, URL of trial registry record.

[The German community mental health system-a review]. / Psychiatrische Versorgung in Deutschland ­ ein Überblick.

The German mental health system has several peculiarities compared to its international counterparts. It shows a surprising amount of heterogeneity, as a variety of payers and care providers interact on the basis of a broad set of legal standards.This narrative review presents the historical background, current organizational aspects, several open questions, and future perspectives. It assumes that there is a need for future care concepts that overcome sector borders, observe the need for coordination and quality indicators, take into account the need for trialogic concepts (users, family, and professionals), reflect on human rights and ethical principles, and consider the need for prevention.

[Community psychiatry in two European regions: a comparison of Bezirk Reutte (Tirol/Austria) and the Bavarian Allgäu (Germany)]. / Gemeindepsychiatrie in zwei europäischen Regionen: Vergleich des Bezirks Reutte in Tirol mit dem südlichen Oberallgäu in Bayern.

BACKGROUND: There is high variance in how mental health services across the globe are organized. OBJECTIVES: How do mental health services in an Austrian and German alpine district differ (Austria: Bezirk Reutte in Tirol; Germany: Southern Oberallgäu in Bavaria)? MATERIALS AND METHODS: Quantitative data were assessed with the European Service Mapping Schedule (ESMS). Additionally, 30 expert interviews (15 in each region) were evaluated using qualitative content analysis (Mayring). RESULTS: In both regions there is no psychiatric hospital and a lack of outpatient psychiatrists and psychotherapists. ESMS shows surprising differences in how mental health services are organized in both regions, which are reflected in the expert interviews. DISCUSSION: In regions where medical-psychiatric services tend to become sparse, there is a shift towards non-medical community services, which may cover different spheres of daily life and span from housing to self-help. CONCLUSION: The study highlights that while structural and process quality can be compared, it is difficult to find indicators for outcome quality.

[Death certificates for suicides: quality investigation based on police records]. / Todesbescheinigungen zu Suiziden: Qualitätsuntersuchung auf Grundlage von Polizeiakten.

BACKGROUND: Death certificates are the basis for German mortality statistics, including suicide statistics. OBJECTIVES: To examine death certificates that are issued in the context of suicide with special focus on the quality of doctors' entries, especially indications of suicide and the stated association between underlying illness and cause of death. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Data from the Allgäu Suicide Study were used. Police records (N = 626) containing the results of suicide investigations as well as death certificates were analysed. RESULTS: There is great heterogeneity as to how physicians issue death certificates in the context of suicide. Clear indications of suicide are often missing and underlying illnesses are seldom mentioned. Nevertheless, there are only minor differences between the number of suicides recorded by the police compared to official statistics. CONCLUSIONS: To improve the quality of death certificates in the context of suicide, physicians should give clearer indications of suicide and put more focus on logically explaining the causes of death. The mortality of mental illnesses might be underestimated when mental illnesses are not regularly mentioned as a potential cause for suicide.