No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

Understanding the definition of treatment response, remission and recovery is very critical in terms of investigating the course of schizophrenia and planning treatment strategies accordingly. In this article, we reviewed various definitions and criteria used in previous studies. Based on this, several limitations and new proposals are discussed. Clear establishment of the criteria for treatment response, remission and recovery for schizophrenia would help clinicians to make a time-appropriate decision for medication plan and to set up the long-term treatment goal in people with schizophrenia.
Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

No abstract available.
Schizophrenia*

This case report emphasizes the role of Assertive Community Treatment (ACT)in managing a family with four members suffering from mental illness, mainly schizophrenia. We report a case of middle-aged lady who was diagnosed with treatment resistant schizophrenia (TRS) living with two other family members with the same illness and their carer who developed major depression from shouldering the burden of caring for mentally ill family members. ACT, through its holistic approach, proved to have reduced hospitalizations and improve symptom control and quality of life in this family.
Schizophrenia

There have been vast amount studies regarding immunologic dysregulation in schizophrenia. The mechanism of immune pathogenesis in schizophrenia still is unclear, even though various immune dysfunction have been reported. We endeavored to report on two major hypothesis on immunologic dysregulation in schizophrenia, the infection hypothesis and autoimmune hypothesis. We went on to focus on the autoimmune hypothesis, which has received the most attention over the years. We explored the accumulated data and the rational behind the autoimmune hypothesis and the implications of the autoimmune hypothesis for future research in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia
Schizophrenia

OBJECTIVES: Using the patient’s perspective, the study’s objective was to estimate the economic cost of treatment for adult schizophrenia patients in a tertiary hospital using key informant interviews. METHODS: A guided structured key informant interview was done to determine key practices in the treatment of adult schizophrenic patients in the charity and pay in-patient and out-patient settings of the tertiary hospital. Cost of treatment included direct (medication, room and board, professional fees, ancillaries) and indirect costs (productivity losses of both patient and caregiver) and was computed based on 1 to 4 week length of stay for inpatients and varying intervals of follow-up for outpatients. Total costs were computed depending on the treatment setting. RESULTS: Twenty nine members of the Department of Psychiatry, involving 5 psychiatric nursing staff, 13 residents-in-training, 4 fellows-in-training and 7 consultants were interviewed. The cost, for charity inpatient care, may range from PhP 2332.00 to PhP 44,861.00 (USD 50.88 to 978.86). For charity outpatient care, this may range from PhP 2892.00 to PhP 21,3612.00 (USD 63.10 to 4660.96) annually. For pay patients, costs were estimated to range from PhP15347.00 to PhP 24,6831.00 (USD 334.87 to 5385.80) for inpatient care and PhP 17,292.00 to PhP 1,125,600.00 (USD 377.31 to 25681.04) for outpatient care. The factor that influenced costs the most was the choice of medication. As of October 15, 2015, 1 USD = 45.83 PhP. CONCLUSION Schizophrenia is a chronic psychiatric illness that places a significant financial burden on patients and their caregivers. Based on the data gathered, patients’ and their families could spend from as low as 2332 to as high as 1,125,600 pesos depending on the treatment setting.
Schizophrenia

Objective: This paper aims to characterize existing financial assistance available to patients with schizophrenia. Specifically, we described (1) the funding mechanisms for the treatment of patients with schizophrenia; (2) the process for accessing financial assistance; and (3) the experiences of consumers of services of these support mechanisms.

Methods: We employed qualitative techniques using key informant interviews (KII) and focus group discussion (FGD). Key informants were officials from institutions providing or offering financial assistance for patients with any health-related concerns, including schizophrenia. Focus group participants were support group members or caregivers of patients with schizophrenia. Purposive sampling was used to select participants for both providers and consumers of financial assistance or scheme. Topic guides for KII and FGD were used for data collection. Thematic analysis was performed on the qualitative data gathered from the informants and focus group participants.

Results: Securing financial assistance for schizophrenia followed a generally similar process, whether the source is from government offices or civil society organizations, and can be grouped into three main stages: (a) pre-application, (b) application, and (c) post-application. While the process of seeking financial assistance appears to be straightforward, issues were encountered in all of the stages by both providers and recipients alike, namely: (a) Financial assistance as an augmentation to patient resources; (b) Mismatch between demand and service capability; (c) Measures of organizational effectiveness; (d) Health professionals and support groups as "bridges" / "facilitators" to financial assistance providers; (e) Financial and non-financial costs incurred by caregivers in applying for financial assistance; and (f) Recipient-provider relationship as a barrier to the feedback process.

Conclusion: This study provides a glimpse of available financial and other relevant assistance to clients, including clients suffering from schizophrenia. More extensive research covering more organizations, support groups, and caregivers from different parts of the country is recommended.