*Goodmayes Hospital, Barley Lane, Ilford, Essex IG3 8XJ, UK, email: henok.getachew{at}nelft.nhs.uk
Newham Centre for Mental Health
Newham Centre for Mental Health, London
AIMS AND METHOD
The study aimed to assess the current provision of psychoeducation programmes for patients with mental illness in the UK. A postal questionnaire was sent randomly to 100 community mental health teams regarding the delivery and characteristics of psychoeducation programmes. Non-responders were contacted via telephone after 8 weeks.
RESULTS
The response rate was 87%. Eight services provided group psychoeducation, 40 provided individual psychoeducation within the care programme approach, and 39 did not provide any psychoeducation programme.
CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS
Patients with mental illnesses have limited access to psychoeducation in routine care. Group programmes should perhaps be more widely implemented as a relatively low-cost intervention.
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