Community re-entry program on global functioning and medication adherence among bipolar affective disorder patients-...

Area of Science:

• Psychiatry
• Mental Health Research
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Community re-entry programs (CREP) aim to equip patients with skills for independent living post-inpatient care.
• Bipolar affective disorder requires effective management strategies to prevent symptom recurrence and improve patient outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantitatively explore the effectiveness of a community re-entry program on global functioning and medication adherence in bipolar affective disorder patients.
• To assess the impact of CREP on patient recovery and long-term management of bipolar disorder.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial (N=50) adhering to CONSORT 2010 guidelines was conducted.
• Participants were assessed using the World Health Organisation Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 and Medication Adherence Rating Scale.
• The intervention group received 8 daily 45-minute sessions of the community re-entry program, with assessments at baseline, post-intervention, and 1-month follow-up.

Main Results:

• The community re-entry program demonstrated a significant time effect and group effect on medication adherence, with a large interaction effect.
• Global functioning showed a significant time effect with a large effect size, but no significant group or interaction effect was observed.
• Post-intervention analysis indicated significant improvements in medication adherence for the intervention group compared to the control group.

Conclusions:

• The community re-entry program (CREP) is effective in enhancing medication adherence among patients with bipolar affective disorder.
• Improved medication adherence facilitated by CREP contributes to the treatment and prevention of symptom recurrence in bipolar disorder.
• Further research may explore CREP's impact on other aspects of functioning in bipolar disorder patients.