[Foreign patients in a community psychiatry centre]

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Public Health
• Sociology

Background:

• Increased referrals to the District Psychiatric Centre (DPC) in Odense over the past decade.
• Need to understand the characteristics and treatment of foreign patients within the DPC.
• Relevance of comparing foreign patients to the general patient population.

Purpose of the Study:

• Register foreign patients receiving psychiatric treatment in the DPC.
• Evaluate differences between foreign and Danish psychiatric patients using a nested case-control study.

Main Methods:

• Nested case-control study design.
• Comparison of clinical information between foreign patients and Danish controls.
• Analysis of demographic and treatment data.

Main Results:

• Out of 168 patients, 60 had a foreign background.
• Danish patients more frequently received early retirement pension and second-generation antipsychotics.
• Foreign patients were more likely to live with family, had shorter illness durations, and fewer prior admissions.

Conclusions:

• Foreign psychiatric patients require improved assistance, including accessible medication and specialized teams.
• Enhanced coordination between psychiatrists and municipalities is crucial.
• Increased awareness of psychiatric disorder consequences among foreign patients is necessary.