[Negative emotions and understanding - patients' perspective on coercion]

This study evaluated involuntarily admitted psychiatric patients' and their perception of coercive measures (i. e. involuntary admission and physical or pharmacological restraint) by asking retrospectively which emotions were induced during the process of coercion.

Interviews were carried out around 3 weeks after coercion. The interview consisted of 31 items categorized into demographic, nosological and coercion-related themes. Patients were also asked about their subjective experiences of the coercion. 40 patients were recruited, with 72 % suffering from psychosis-related and 21 % with affective disorders. For 22.5 % of the patients, this was their first psychiatric hospitalization. The most frequently reported emotions were rage, anger and despair. Patients who were more stable, according to the Clinical Global Impressions scale (CGI), generally evaluated the coercion as being worse.

More than half of the patients were satisfied with the treatment received during hospitalization. The potential suffering caused as a result of patients' perceptions of the coercion, and the impact of this on the course of the disease should be taken into account when developing new treatment strategies.