Social cognition and emotional rehabilitation in participants with schizofrenia.

Introduction: People with schizophrenia have deficits in social cognition, emotion and social perception, as well as attributional style. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of a multicomponent social cognition training program, e-Motional Training® (ET), in people with schizophrenia and to compare its efficacy with people who did not receive it. Therefore, a single-blind RCT was conducted in participants with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Methods: A randomized, single-blind, clinical trial was conducted with 50 stable outparticipants with schizophrenia (registry number CHUC_2019_109). All participants (control and intervention) were treated with pharmacotherapy, case management and were on Individual Placement and Support methodology for competitive employment. The intervention group was treated with ET, an online program designed for social cognition rehabilitation. Pre and post assessment was performed using different battery of tests. General mixed models with subject identification and repeated measures over time were used. Results: Different pre and post measurements were performed in the two groups. No significant differences were found in sociodemographic characteristics between the control and intervention groups. Improvements were obtained in the intervention group in the Ekman test (p = 0.009), mainly enhanced by the improvement shown in three emotions: fear, sadness and disgust (p = 0.041, p = 0.021 and p = 0.038 respectively). Conclusion: ET is a promising online training tool for social cognition deficits in schizophrenia, in particular, for the improvement of emotions.Clinical Trial Registration: https://beta.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT05866328.

Efectividad de una estrategia de apoyo individualizado al empleo para personas con trastornos mentales graves / Effectiveness of individual supported employment for people with severe mental disorders

Objetivo: Valorar la efectividad de una estrategia de apoyo individualizado al empleo (IPS) en personas con enfermedad mental grave en la isla de Tenerife (España). Método: Pacientes de los Servicios de Salud Mental Comunitaria con trastornos mentales graves fueron asignados a dos grupos de forma aleatorizada. En uno de ellos se aplicó el método IPS (n=124) y en el grupo control (n=75) se asesoró en la manera habitual de búsqueda de empleo. Los pacientes fueron seguidos una media de 3,4 años y se analizó cuántos trabajaron al menos un día, el tiempo trabajado, los salarios, el número de contratos y el número de admisiones hospitalarias. Se usaron métodos estadísticos no paramétricos en la comparación de resultados (U de Mann-Whitney). Resultados: Los pacientes asignados al grupo IPS trabajaron al menos un día el 99%, frente al 75% del grupo control; trabajaron de media 30,1 semanas/año vs. 7,4; el salario mensual fue de 777,9 euros vs. 599,9 euros; el número de contratos por persona fue de 3,89 vs. 4,85, y los ingresos hospitalarios fueron 0,19 vs. 2,1. Conclusión: La estrategia IPS es efectiva en la integración laboral de personas con enfermedad mental grave, logrando que trabajen más tiempo, tengan mayor salario y menos ingresos hospitalarios, en un contexto social de alto desempleo

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of an individual placement and support (IPS) strategy in people with severe mental disorders in Tenerife Island (Spain). Methods: Patients of Community Mental Health Services with severe mental disorders were randomly assigned to two groups. One of them received IPS (n=124), and the control group (n=75) was advised in the usual job search. Patients were followed up for an average of 3.4 years and an analysis was made of how many patients worked at least one day, working hours, wages, the number of contracts and the number of hospital admissions. Non-parametric methods were used to compare the results (Mann-Whitney U test). Results: The percentage of patients who worked at least one day was 99% in the IPS group compared with 75% in the control group; they worked on average 30.1 weeks per year vs 7.4; the monthly salary was Euros 777.9 vs Euros 599.9; the number of contracts per person was 3.89 vs 4.85, and hospital admissions were 0.19 vs 2.1. Conclusions: The IPS strategy is effective for the labour integration of people with severe mental illness getting them to work longer, have higher wages and fewer hospital admissions

[Effectiveness of individual supported employment for people with severe mental disorders]. / Efectividad de una estrategia de apoyo individualizado al empleo para personas con trastornos mentales graves.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effectiveness of an individual placement and support (IPS) strategy in people with severe mental disorders in Tenerife Island (Spain). METHODS: Patients of Community Mental Health Services with severe mental disorders were randomly assigned to two groups. One of them received IPS (n=124), and the control group (n=75) was advised in the usual job search. Patients were followed up for an average of 3.4 years and an analysis was made of how many patients worked at least one day, working hours, wages, the number of contracts and the number of hospital admissions. Non-parametric methods were used to compare the results (Mann-Whitney U test). RESULTS: The percentage of patients who worked at least one day was 99% in the IPS group compared with 75% in the control group; they worked on average 30.1 weeks per year vs 7.4; the monthly salary was € 777.9 vs € 599.9; the number of contracts per person was 3.89 vs 4.85, and hospital admissions were 0.19 vs 2.1. CONCLUSIONS: The IPS strategy is effective for the labour integration of people with severe mental illness getting them to work longer, have higher wages and fewer hospital admissions.