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Patient attitudes to electroconvulsive therapy

St. Vincent’s University Hospital, Elm Park, Dublin

Shane McCarron, Clinical Nurse Specialist

ECT Department, St Patrick’s Hospital, Dublin

James V. Lucey, Clinical Senior Lecturer

Department of Psychiatry, Trinity College Medical School, Dublin University and Consultant Psychiatrist, St Patrick’s Hospital, Dublin, Ireland, email: jlucey{at}stpatsmail.com

Declaration of interest

None.

AIMS AND METHODS

To investigate patients’ subjective attitudes to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) a questionnaire was posted to 89 consecutive patients who had received treatment in an ECT department.

RESULTS

Fifty-one responses were obtained (57%). Results indicated a high satisfaction with the department and the treatment itself; 44 respondents would or might have ECT again and 35 reported at least a modest improvement with ECT. However, a high rate (60%) of subjective cognitive impairment was reported.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

Electroconvulsive therapy can be an acceptable treatment option for patients when administered in an accredited clinic. More research is urgently required to investigate the exact nature of ECT-associated cognitive impairment, in terms of functional deficits, severity and practical importance to patients’ lives.

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				G. Rush, S. McCarron, and J. V. Lucey Consent to ECT: patients' experiences in an Irish ECT clinic Psychiatr. Bull., January 1, 2008; 32(1): 15 - 17. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]