Assertive outreach in Slovenia; identification of target group and goals of treatment in a new program

A team from the Rehabilitation unit of Ljubljana psychiatric clinic attended a course on community care in London in October and November 2005. Because we decided that the methods presented to us could be of great use in Slovenia where the Health system is lacking such services we decided to implement them after our return. Immediately after we returned we started to carry out our plan. We designated our target group which were patients who poorly participated in treatment or had multiple and severe difficulties functioning and retaining their progress after discharge. Our goals were to improve patient participation in treatment before and after discharge, less and shorter hospitalizations and better integration of patients into society. Initial results are very positive, which leaves me much hope for further implementation of assertive outreach and community care in Slovenia.