 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
|
||||||||
 |
|||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|||||
|
|
|
||||||
|
 |
|
|
|||||
 |
|
Fast Response to a First Episode of Psychosis -- New service helps clients recover from a psychotic episode. |
The on-call physician makes a phone call to the Home Intervention for Psychosis (HIP) Program, the newest service offered by the First Episode Psychosis Program at the Centre. A member of this specialized team will respond to that call.
The First Episode Psychosis Program, which started in 1992, provides a comprehensive range of services that can facilitate recovery from severe mental illness and prevent the devastating deterioration that illnesses like schizophrenia have led to in the past. "Our program was one of the first in the world to specialize in the treatment and study of first-episode clients," says Dr. Robert Zipursky, Clinical Director of the Schizophrenia and Continuing Care Program at the Centre and Tapscott Chair in Schizophrenia Studies at the University of Toronto. "The research results from our program have had a major impact on how we treat young people at the beginning of the illness."
The program's research findings and clinical experience are highlighted in The Early Stages of Schizophrenia, edited by Dr. Zipursky and published this year by the American Psychiatric Press.
HIP is the first program of its kind to have a mobile treatment team in North America devoted to assessing and treating people who are having a first episode of psychosis. HIP team members work with young clients who have had a first episode, and their families, seven days a week, 24 hours a day. When HIP team members are not working with clients and families in the community or helping with emergencies, they are working to inform service providers and partners -- from hostels and community mental health services to colleges -- about this service.
A new youth clinic in Mississauga has also been developed by the First Episode Program to meet the needs of young people in Peel Region who are experiencing psychosis. The clinic ensures that care is received close to home in a comfortable community setting.
In another exciting development, the First Episode Learning Centre is about to open its own building off-site. This learning centre, the first of its kind in the world, is a pilot program funded by the Centre's Foundation to meet the needs of young people and their families who are working to get their lives back on track after a first episode of psychosis. In keeping with the First Episode Program's tradition in innovative clinical research, the Learning Centre will also have a major research focus on developing and testing new psychosocial treatments for clients and family members. "We will offer them a menu of services so that they can get on with their lives and can concentrate on something other than mental illness," says April Collins, manager of the First Episode Program.
"The evidence suggests that the earlier we identify and detect people who have schizophrenia and get them into appropriate treatment, the better the outcome," says Collins. A diagnosis of schizophrenia can have a catastrophic effect on clients and their families. In the past, this diagnosis could be shattering due to the stigma surrounding the illness and the perception that the client would not fully recover. With programs like First Episode and HIP, the young man in the emergency room now has more than a fighting chance.
 |
|
|
||||||
|
 |
|
For general information on addiction and mental health:
|
|
|
 |
||
|
Home
/ About Addiction / About Mental Health / Community Health &
Education / Research
/
|
||||||||
This page was last modified on Wednesday, February 5, 2003 9:17 AM
download
the free Acrobat PDF Reader
1-800-463-6273
