Different perspectives of short-term changes in the rehabilitation of schizophrenic patients

In the rehabilitation of schizophrenic patients, changes and outcome are usually assessed by members of multiprofessional therapeutic teams and by the patients themselves. In this study, the correlations of different perspectives of change during rehabilitation were investigated. After admission to a partial hospitalization program (printing workshop), 12 schizophrenic patients were examined weekly; the test period lasted 12 weeks. Ratings concerning various aspects of behavior were independently made by the patients themselves, by a work therapist, and by a psychiatrist, and week-by-week changes were analyzed. Factor analysis and correlations among change scores suggest a moderate to high homogeneity of each psychiatrist's and work therapist's ratings. Correlations among the three perspectives of change show little substantial concordance. Consequences for the practical work of multiprofessional teams in the rehabilitation of schizophrenic patients are discussed.