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Psychosi s
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subscr i pt i on i nf or m at i on:
ht t p: //www. t andf onl i ne. com /l oi /r psy20
The Com prehensi ve Open- Di al ogue
Approach i n W est ern Lapl and: I I .
Long- t erm st abi l i t y of acut e psychosi s
out com es i n advanced com m uni t y care
Jaakko Sei kkul a a , Bi r gi t t a Al akar e b & Jukka Aal t onen a
a Uni ver si t y of Jyväskyl ä, Psychol ogy , Jyväskyl ä, Fi nl and
b Ker opudas Hospi t al , Ki vi r ant a, Fi nl and
Avai l abl e onl i ne: 09 Aug 2011
To ci t e t hi s art i cl e: Jaakko Sei kkul a, Bi r gi t t a Al akar e & Jukka Aal t onen ( 2011) : The Com pr ehensi ve
Open- Di al ogue Appr oach i n W est er n Lapl and: I I . Long- t er m st abi l i t y of acut e psychosi s out com es i n
advanced com m uni t y car e, Psychosi s, DOI : 10. 1080/17522439. 2011. 595819
To l i nk t o t hi s art i cl e: ht t p: //dx. doi . or g/10. 1080/17522439. 2011. 595819
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The Comprehensive Open-Dialogue Approach in Western
Lapland: II. Long-term stability of acute psychosis outcomes in
advanced community care
Jaakko Seikkulaa*, Birgitta Alakareband Jukka Aaltonena
aUniversity of Jyväskylä, Psychology, Jyväskylä, Finland;bKeropudas Hospital, Kiviranta,
Finland
(Received 21 December 2010; final version received 7 June 2011)
An open dialogue need-adapted approach was applied in Finnish Western Lap-
land by organizing three-year family therapy training for the entire staff, and by
following the outcomes. Three inclusion periods of first-episode psychotic
patients were compared. In a two-year follow-up of two consecutive periods
during the 1990s (1992–3 and 1994–7) it was found that 81% of patients did
not have any residual psychotic symptoms, and that 84% had returned to full-
time employment or studies. Only 33% had used neuroleptic medication. A third
inclusion period, covering 2003–2005, was organized to determine whether the
outcomes were consistent 10 years after the preliminary period. Fewer schizo-
phrenia psychotic patients emerged, and their mean age was significantly lower.
Duration of untreated psychosis had shortened to three weeks and the outcomes
remained as good as for the first two periods. It is therefore suggested that the
new practice can be related to profound changes in the incidence of severe men-
tal health problems. This is supported by the large number of local inhabitants
participating in treatment meetings for crises. Professionals had learned to make
early contact in the event of crisis, and by this means prevent problems from
developing into more severe cases.
Keywords: first episode psychosis; community care; need-adapted approach;
open dialogues
In this study, our aim was to determine the effectiveness of the Open Dialogue
approach in the treatment of first-episode psychotic patients. Two research projects
had already been conducted in Western Lapland, the first as part of the Finnish
National API (Acute Psychosis Integrated Treatment) study (1992 to end-1993),
with a continuation as the local Open Dialogue in Acute Psychosis (ODAP) project
(1994–1997) (Seikkula et al., 2003; Seikkula et al., 2006). To determine how far
the outcomes in the treatment of acute psychosis remained stable, a third study was
conducted, examining the period 2003–2005. This paper reports on the outcomes of
all these studies, focusing particularly on the longer-term stability of the outcomes.
For ease of reference the periods in question will be referred to as API1992-1993,
ODAP1994–1997, and ODAP2003–2005.
*Corresponding author. Email: jaakko.seikkula@jyu.fi
PsychosisAquatic Insects
2011, 1–13, iFirst Article
ISSN 1752-2439 print/ISSN 1752-2447 online
? 2011 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/17522439.2011.595819
http://www.informaworld.com
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Page 3
The basic aim of community psychiatry is the integration of different
approaches and treatment modalities during a continuous treatment process. The
treatment should be adapted to the changing needs and sub-outcomes emerging
during the process, forming an entity that will guarantee the best treatment for
each patient (Alanen, Lehtinen, Räkköläinen, & Aaltonen 1991; Alanen, 2009).
A criticism often leveled against the one-method designs mostly used in psy-
chotherapy outcome studies is that they tend to incorporate a view of stable
therapeutic needs – needs supposedly present from the very beginning of the
treatment till the very end of it. Moreover, the need to have a reliable study
design favors therapeutic interventions involving a similar treatment modality
from case to case. This can be difficult to implement, for example in the pub-
lic health sector, where patient characteristics, and treatment processes may vary
from case to case, according to the specific needs of each patient and the spe-
cific context of the services.
Outcome studies in acute psychosis mostly consist of controlled designs, with
the control making it possible to analyze one specific method of treatment. Few
studies exist on outcomes in community psychiatry in which treatment is
adapted to individual need, even if as long ago as the 1970s several (apparently
well-functioning) community-based crisis intervention programs were reported
(Perlmutter, 1986; Rhine, & Mayerson, 1971; Rubinstein, 1972). In recent years,
assertive community treatment (ACT) has become the most intensively studied
form of community psychiatry (Drake et al., 2001; Dixon, 2000; Marshall &
Lockwood, 2004; Mueser, Bond, Drake, & Resnick, 1998; Verhaegh, Bongers,
Kroon, & Garretsen, 2009). The model includes multidisciplinary team work,
integrated care, and working within the community; it aims at adapting to every-
day needs, quick crisis intervention, an assertive attitude, an individual approach,
and continuity of care. Killaspy et al. (2009) found that staff members’ experi-
ences of their work showed differences compared to treatment within the usual
setting. ACT team members described more varied and flexible approaches with
their patients, for example in having general conversations with their clients, not
only on matters related to treatment. Staff members experienced support from
each other through working as a team. ACT has improved the outcomes of
treatment by reducing hospitalizations and improving employment status. It has
assisted in shortening the duration of untreated psychosis (DUP), and has been
found cost-effective (Marshall & Lockwood, 2003). Nevertheless, not all studies
have shown such positive outcomes, most notably in cases of low fidelity to the
original ACT model (Bodén, Sundström, Lindström, Wieselgren, & Lindström,
2009). Fidelity appears to be important, at least in cases of first-episode psycho-
sis (Verhaegh et al., 2009).
In these studies there are similarities to the need-adapted approach (NAA)
described in this paper. In the NAA the basic aims do indeed resemble ACT in
terms of stressing family-centeredness, home visits, and team work. The main dif-
ference is that the NAA integrates specific psychotherapeutic methods as a part of
an overall integrated approach.
In the small Finnish province consisting of the south-western part of Finn-
ish Lapland, community psychiatry has been developed since the beginning of
the 1980s (Aaltonen, Seikkula, & Lehtinen, 2011). The outcomes and processes
in the treatment of psychosis and other severe problems have been reported in
many studies (Haarakangas, 1997; Keränen, 1992; Seikkula, 1994; Seikkula
2 J. Seikkula et al.
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Page 4
et al., 2003; Seikkula et al., 2006). In the latest studies, concerning the out-
comes in first-episode psychosis, discussion has focused on the exceptional
five-year outcome in psychotic symptoms and employment status (Seikkula
et al., 2006). Critical comments have centered on the methodology of the stud-
ies (Fris, Larsen, & Melle, 2003), insisting that not every psychotic patient
could have been included, given that the outcomes are so (unrealistically)
favorable.
In the study described in the first, accompanying paper (Aaltonen et al., 2011)
we focused on the changes in the incidence of first-episode psychosis that took
place after initiating the new approach. The aim in this second study was to deter-
mine whether the outcomes in the treatment of first-episode psychosis have
remained consistent over a 10-year period.
Community treatment in western Lapland
Based on the need-adapted approach first initiated by Yrjö Alanen and his team
(Alanen, 1997, 2009; Lehtinen, Aaltonen, Koffert, Räkkölöinen, & Syvälahti,
2000), a community psychiatric system was initiated in the south-western part of
Finnish Lapland in the early 1980s. Progressing through a number of phases, the
system has been developed to function in a consistent manner from the mid-
1990s (Aaltonen et al., in press; Seikkula et al., 2003; Seikkula et al., 2006;
Seikkula & Arnkil, 2006). In the community psychiatric system there are three
central elements:
1. Family and Team-centeredness
The system of treatment is guided by seven main principles, established in a
research project in the mid-1990s (Aaltonen et al., 1997, 2011). Hence:
(1) the first meeting should be organized immediately, within 24 hours of contact
being made with the mental health services;
(2) the social network of the patient, including the family and the professionals
working with this specific family, should always be invited to participate,
from the outset and for as long as required;
(3) the treatment should be flexibly adapted to the specific needs of the patient
and the family, using the therapy methods most suited to the case in ques-
tion;
(4) the mental health systems should guarantee that specific persons/teams will
take responsibility for the treatment, organizing a case-specific team that will
make decisions together with the family concerning all the treatment plan-
ning and actions to be taken;
(5) the team should aim to guarantee psychological continuity by inviting staff
members from different facilities to collaborate, for as long as required;
(6) the team should aim at promoting a sense of security, generating a therapeu-
tic process that can tolerate uncertainty in order to mobilize the psychologi-
cal resources of the family and the social network;
(7) the team should focus on generating dialogue in the joint therapy meetings,
in order to create new words and a new joint language for experiences that
previously did not have words.
Psychosis3
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Page 5
2. Psychotherapy Training for all Staff Members
The training of the staff consists of a one-year introductory program and a specific
three-year program in family therapy (Aaltonen et al., 2011). In addition, staff mem-
bers are encouraged to undergo other forms of psychotherapy training, such as indi-
vidual psychodynamic or cognitive psychotherapy. The training format is based on
early notions that the basic education of the staff did not give enough support to
community-based and family-centered practice, with basic education being too
much focused on individual treatment of the most severe mental health problems
within an in-patient setting. For this reason, since 1989 the program has included
multidisciplinary on-the-job psychotherapy training for the entire staff, including
doctors, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and others. The group members in
this training meet for one day every second week, focusing on theories, direct
supervision, and working with their own family background. The trainers are
mainly fellow employees in the system, people who have qualified as trainers after
undergoing a total of six years of training in cooperation with the Finnish Associa-
tion for Mental Health. Thus the aim has been to guarantee a training program that
will allow trainers to use of the official title of Psychotherapist, in accordance with
Finnish law. At the time of writing this paper the training has been going on for
more than 20 years, with about 150 people in the province (population 70,000) hav-
ing gone through it. The training program is organized in collaboration with the
Department of Psychology at the University of Jyväskylä, where author JA acted as
Professor of Family Therapy.
3. The Research Project
The ongoing research program was initiated during the 1980s, in such a way as to
guarantee that the information for developing the local treatment system would be
based on the systematic exploration and analysis of the outcomes and processes in
the treatment (Aaltonen et al., 2011; Alanen, 2009). The most basic principle has
been to focus on naturalistic designs in the real life of Western Lapland, rather than
on randomized trials. The follow-up studies have been descriptive in nature, rather
than aimed at identifying generalized explanatory factors for change (Seikkula
et al., 2003; Seikkula et al., 2006). Throughout the studies, a variety of qualitative
analyses of treatment processes have been conducted. These studies have provided
important knowledge which has allowed the psychotherapeutic quality of the work
to be developed (Haarakangas, 1997; Seikkula, 2002).
Study Design and Participants
The data for the present study were gathered over three periods, the aim being to
determine whether the outcomes of first-episode psychosis have remained stable
over a the period from 1992 until 2005 in Western Lapland. The first two periods,
named (1) the API1992-1993period (1 March 1992 until 31 December 1993; N = 36)
and (2) the ODAP1994-1997period (1 January 1994 until 31 March 1997; N = 46)
have already been reported (Seikkula et al., 2002, 2003, 2006). These periods
belonged to a multicenter research project, planned as part of a Finnish national
project. The specific focus was on improving community treatment and increasing
information concerning the place of medication in the treatment of psychosis. The
project was jointly organized by the National Research and Development Center for
4 J. Seikkula et al.
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Page 6
Welfare and Health (STAKES), Department of Psychology (University of Jyväs-
kylä), and the Department of Pharmacology (University of Turku). It was carried
out in six psychiatric treatment centers with a total catchment area of 600,000
inhabitants. one of these centers was the western Lapland catchment area.
The third period, referred to here as ODAP2003-2005(from 1 February 2003 until
31 December 2005; N = 18), was specifically planned to gather information on
first-episode psychotic patients in the daily clinical setting, with a view to determin-
ing the stability of the results after the earlier research projects. The local ethical
committee gave permission for the study, and every patient gave informed written
consent regarding inclusion.
The study included all first-episode patients between 16 and 50 years of age
with non-affective psychosis (using DSM-III-R and DSM IV for the third period,
ODAP2003-2005). The diagnosis was made in two phases. After the first meeting, the
team, in conjunction with the responsible chief psychiatrist (author BA), formulated
an initial hypothesis; then, after six months, having also interviewed the patients
individually, the chief psychiatrist made the final diagnosis. To test reliability, an
experienced psychiatrist from outside the region re-diagnosed the patients on the
basis of the patient records. The diagnostic consistency of the schizophrenia diagno-
sis was 78% (Kappa = .453; p =.002).
The main sources of information were: (1) premorbid variables such as psy-
chiatric and employment status at the outset, and duration of untreated psychosis
(DUP) (defined as the time between first psychotic symptoms and the start of
psychosocial intervention); (2) process variables, i.e. the registered number of
hospital days, number of family meetings, and registration of the use of antipsy-
chotic medication and individual psychotherapy; (3) outcome variables, i.e. regis-
tered number of relapses (defined as making a new contact for treatment after
terminating the original treatment, or as an intensification of existing treatment
because of new psychotic or other severe symptoms), employment status, and
ratings of the mental state of the patients on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale
(BPRS), the Global Assessment of Function Scale (GAF), and a five-category
sub-scale of the Strauss–Carpenter Rating Scale (Strauss & Carpenter, 1972;
Opjordsmoen, 1991). During the API and ODAP periods, the ratings were con-
ducted jointly by two of the authors (JS and BA) using a consensus conference
method. These authors worked as researchers, and were not involved as thera-
pists in the treatment process. During the third study period, ODAP2003-2005, all
the registrations and ratings were performed by an experienced nurse and author
BA. The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) of the BPRS was .774 at the
outset and .667 at the follow-up during the API1992-1993period, and .783 at the
outset and .735 at the follow-up during the ODAP1994-1997period. During the
ODAP2003-2005period Cronbach’s alpha was .730 at the outset, and .863 at the
two-year follow-up.
All the ratings mentioned above were performed at the baseline and at the two-
year follow-up. During the first treatment meetings, the family was interviewed to
determine the duration of psychotic and prodromal symptoms prior to first contact.
Author BA verified this during an individual interview with the patient. The follow-
up interviews took place in the presence of both the case-specific treatment team
and the family. The statistical analysis was conducted using the Pearson Chi-square
in cross-tables, and a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) for comparison of the
means of independent groups.
Psychosis5
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Page 7
Attrition
Table 1 summarizes the reasons for exclusion in the follow-up interviews.
In the third ODAP2003-2005period, more attrition took place, mainly due to emi-
gration from the province. To some extent this illustrates a change in society, since
during the 2000s there was more emigration than in the early 1990s, when the pop-
ulation was more or less stable. The population decreased from 72,000 in 1995 to
68,000 in 2005. The second possible reason for emigration is connected with the
mean age of the patients: The patients were younger during ODAP2003-2005and thus
at an age when they might move for the sake of their studies. When one compares
the variables of sex, age, employment status, diagnosis, and duration of untreated
psychosis for (1) the entire “intention-to-treat” groups and (2) the patients reached
in the follow-up, one significant difference can be observed. In ODAP2003-2005the
duration of untreated psychosis was higher among the dropout patients. Overall, it
appears that in all three periods the groups analyzed are strongly representative of
the entire “intention-to-treat” group of psychotic patients for the timeframe in ques-
tion, except for a slight tendency in the third period to select for analysis cases with
a shorter duration of untreated psychosis.
Results
Comparison of the groups at outset
Differences were observed in mean age, marital status, and employment status. In
all these respects the group coming for treatment in 2002–2005 differed from the
two groups who came in the 1990s. Psychotic patients were significantly younger
in the third group; they also had a higher likelihood of being single and of studying
instead of working.
Table 1. Reasons for exclusion from the study during the two-year follow-up period.
API
(01.04.1992–
31.12.1993)
ODAP(01.01.1994–
31.12.1997)
ODAP2(01.01.2003–
31.12.2005)
Total
Treatment started
Treatment started in a
unit outside OD
Refused to participate
Not reached at two-year
follow-up
39
1
51
1
27*
117
1
2
2
2
3
6
Deceased
–suicide
– other reason
Total sample at two-year
follow-up
2
2**
0
33
2
1**
1
43
0
0
0
1895
Notes: *Altogether 31 patient contacts were registered, but four were excluded because of only one
treatment contact occurred and no possibility for verifying psychotic experience was realized. None of
these responded to contacts for follow-up.
**All suicides took place in 1995 when a suicidal epidemic emerged in the province.
6 J. Seikkula et al.
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Page 8
Table 2.
Characteristics and premorbid adjustment at baseline of the patients reached in the follow-up within the three groups.
API1992-1993
ODAP1994-1997
ODAP2003-2005
Chi-square
df
p
(N = 34)
(N=46)
(N = 18)
Age
19–38
17–43
16–42
Mean
26.6
26.8
20.2
t = 3.53
50
.001
Sex
Male
16 (47%)
16 (35%)
9 (50%)
Female
18 (53%)
30 (65%)
9 (50%)
1.8
2
NS
Marital status
9.7
6
NS
Single
20 (59%)
34 (74%)
15 (83%)
Married, living together or divorced
14 (41%)
12 (26%)
3 (17%)
12.2
6
.057
Employment status
260
8
.001
Studying
11 (32%)
13 (28%)
12 (67%)
Working
14 (41%)
24 (52%)
0
Unemployed
3 (9%)
6 (13%)
2 (11%)
Passive
6 (18%)
3 (7%)
4 (22%)
Diagnosis/DSM-III-R
6.23
6
NS
Brief psychotic episode
5 (15%)
11 (24%)
7 (39%)
sychosis (NOS)
7 (21%)
10 (22%)
4 (22%)
Schizophreniform
9 (26%)
6 (13%)
3 (17%)
psychosis
Schizophrenia
13 (38%)
19 (41%)
4 (22%)
Note: Unemployed means having been working during the previous two years, but at the moment unemployed and registered as job-seeking with the employment
services.
Psychosis7
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Page 9
Comparison of the groups at follow-up
Treatment processes
The duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) was 3.3 months during the first ODAP
period compared to 4.2 months in the API period (p = .069), as shown in Table 4. It
declined to half a month in the ODAP2003-2005group, the longest time being three
months. The ODAP1994-1997group had fewer hospital days than the API group
(p<.001), but no differences were found in a comparison between the ODAP1994-1997
and ODAP2003-2005period. The number of family therapy meetings stayed about the
same in all three periods. Neuroleptic medication was used in the first two groups in
only a quarter of cases, but showed an increasing trend in the third group, in which
50% had taken and 28% were continuing to take medication (Table 3). However, this
aspect may have been affected by the larger number of dropouts in ODAP2003-2005,
since treatment had been terminated among those patients who were not reached at
the follow-up, and according to preliminary information they were not using antipsy-
chotic medication. In the two first groups, first generation neuroleptics were used as
the antipsychotic medication, while in the third group, second generation antipsy-
chotics were used.
Treatment outcomes
More than 70% of the patients in each period did not have a single relapse during
the two-year follow-up period. Concerning residual psychotic symptoms, the
ODAP2003-2005group had significantly fewer psychotic symptoms at the two-year
follow-up, but their BPRS score was higher compared to the ODAP1994-1997group
(Table 4; p <.001). In each group more than 80% of the patients did not have any
Table 3.
two-year follow-up.
Frequencies in treatment process and outcome variables in the three groups at the
API1992-1993
ODAP1994-1997
ODAP2003-2005
Chi-
square df
P
Use of neuroleptics
Started
Ongoing
9 (26%)
5 (15%)
12 (26%)
5 (11%)
9 (50%)
5 (28%)
4.474 NS
Individual psychotherapy
Yes
No
12 (33%)
22
21 (46%)
25
12 (67%)
6
No of relapses
0
1
2
>2
Employment status
at two-year follow-up
Studying or working
Unemployed
Disability allowance
25 (74%)
6
3
0
38 (83%)
5
2
1
13 (72%)
0
3
2
16.110 NS
7.294 NS
21 (62%)
4 (12%)
9 (26%)
35 (78%)
6 (13%)
4 (9%)
13 (72%)
2 (12%)
4 (16%)
8 J. Seikkula et al.
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Table 4.
Means of treatment process and outcome variables in the three groups at baseline and at the two-year follow-up, t-test.
API1992–1993
(N=33)
ODAP1994–1997
(N=42)
ODAP2003–2005
(N=18)
mean
sd
mean
sd
means
d
t-value
P
Duration of untreated psychosis (DUP), months
Mean
4.3
7.0
3.3
3.8
.5
.9
2.3
.001
**
Range
0–13
0–3
Hospitalization days
25.7
44.2
9.3
18.3
13.6
27.8
.96
.001
*
Range
0–124
0–89
0.83
Number of family
treatment meetings
26.1
14.1
20.7
20.6
23.3
19.2
0.99
NS
Range
2–55
0–99
0–38
BPRS Baseline
47.4
12.5
48.8
12.2
52.1
9.8
2.5
NS
Two-year follow-up
30.2
12.9
23.7
4.5
28.5
8.8
22.6
.001
**
Residual psychotic symptomsBaseline
3.21
.64
2.98
.80
1.56
.64
.35
NS
Two-year follow-up
.50
.90
.30
.70
.17
.38
10.1
.003
*
Notes: *pair comparison between API and ODAP2003–2005.
**pair comparison between ODAP1994–1997and ODAP2003–2005.
Psychosis9
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Page 11
remaining psychotic symptoms. It was discovered that 27% of the API patients,
14% of the ODAP1994-1997patients, and 16% of the ODAP2003-2005patients, were
living on disability allowance (Table 3). Thus in the last two periods more than
84% were studying, employed, or actively seeking employment. This result has
stayed the same over a 10-year period involving different individual patients.
Discussion
The analysis was based on two different studies. The first study, covering the first
two periods, has already been reported. The third period is a new one, selected for
the purposes of this specific report with the aim of determining whether the out-
comes obtained in the 1990s still held as the timeframe moved into the 2000s. For
the most part it could be verified that this was the case, but some interesting
changes were noted. First of all, the group of psychotic patients in the 2000s
seemed to be different, in the sense that the patients were younger and included
fewer schizophrenia patients (Table 2). The duration of untreated psychosis had
declined to half a month, compared to 3.5 months during the 1990s. Second, differ-
ences occurred in the remaining psychotic symptoms, with fewer symptoms in the
2000s than in the 1990s. In other ways the outcomes – including the employment
status – remained the same, so that more than 84% of the patients were capable of
returning to active social life, or were in full employment, or studies. However, in
the third period the relative proportion of brief psychotic episodes was higher than
in the first two groups. Even taking account of this bias, the social outcome for
non-affective psychoses seems to remain positive.
These results raise some interesting questions. What is the significance of the
change in the configuration of the groups of first-episode psychotic patients? Wes-
tern Lapland is a small province, and community mental health practice has been
conducted within it since the late 1980s, i.e. covering a period of about 20 years
to the end of the last inclusion period. Under the new system, the families are
immediately invited to joint meetings in all cases of crisis. This has led to a posi-
tive change in the whole culture of using mental health services. This is reflected
in a general trend towards earlier initiation of treatment. At the same time, the
comprehensive training in both family therapy and individual therapy for all staff
members has made the treatment system itself more willing to consider psychotic
phenomena from a psychological and systemic viewpoint: the entire treatment sys-
tem is more oriented towards the changing needs of patients, families, and their
relational systems (Whitaker, 2010). All this has led a shortened duration of
untreated psychosis, and to first contact tending to be made at a younger age.
The overall result is that psychotic symptoms are less entrenched than is the case
where psychotic patients may have been psychotic for a year before first contact
(Aaltonen et al., 2011).
The second major aspect involves the importance of the social network function-
ing collaboratively. In each new contact those professionals who are seen as rele-
vant are invited to joint meetings. As one element in this, the employment
authorities are invited to joint therapy meetings, in order to plan rehabilitation sup-
port for clients if this should be necessary. The young patient is regarded as compe-
tent to remain in active social life, even if he/she experiences crises and possible
symptoms. To a large extent this excludes the process of being “chronified” in
illness – a process which is more likely when patients move to living on a disability
10 J. Seikkula et al.
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Page 12
allowance. In psychotic crises there are particular dangers in the patient staying out-
side the social context, since he/she can easily interpret other people as being dan-
gerous, and may thus try to avoid contact. In the open dialogue treatment system of
western Lapland, young patients are encouraged to stay within the social context,
and this seems to encourage a return to active employment and studies.
Over the 20-year period in question, the number of psychotic patients and the
incidence of schizophrenia cases seem to have declined – which is an interesting
phenomena in itself (Aaltonen et al., 2011). Some previous studies have indicated
that the incidence of psychosis tends to show a particular increase in areas of immi-
gration. It has been suggested that this is connected with increased drug abuse (e.g.
Boydell at al., 2003). Nevertheless, other studies have shown a general decline in
the incidence of psychosis and schizophrenia, especially in stable population situa-
tions. In western Lapland, the population statistics show no emigration, and in gen-
eral terms the population has remained fairly stable. In Finland as a whole, the
incidence of schizophrenia has once again recently started to show an increase
(Salokangas et al., 2011). A small decline in the incidence of schizophrenia is not
in itself surprising, but major questions arise concerning the proportion of patients
who go on to develop schizophrenia among the first-episode psychosis group. This
may be related to the long-term and comprehensive development of the public
health treatment culture. The implication seems to be that in Western Lapland, pop-
ulation stability has only had minor relevance for a positive outcome, in comparison
with the notable stability of the treatment culture. Continuous efforts have been
made over several years to develop the culture according the principles of the need-
adapted approach, with open dialogue as an important constituent. It appears that
the open dialogue, with its early engagement with mental health problems, and
retention of family involvement and the social network, plays an important role in
the prevention of further deterioration into schizophrenia.
In parallel with the above, some suggestions can be drawn that the long-term
development of the system has changed the overall culture of the basic population
in a more positive direction in relation to all psychiatric treatment. This is reflected
in earlier initiation of treatment processes, often within prodromal phases, and in an
increased openness in participating psychiatric treatment. In western Lapland a large
proportion of the local population has participated in therapy meetings. Every year,
about 1500 patients undergoing acute psychiatric crises are met, and in nearly all
cases at least closest family members participate in the first meetings. It can thus be
estimated that every year about 4500–7000 people participate in joint therapy meet-
ings, amounting to as much as 5–10% of the population. In this kind of setting one
needs to emphasize the staff qualities that Rosen (2006) saw as necessary. In the
community setting one cannot rely on the kind of day-program routines that might
schedule the course of the day within an in-patient setting. What is important are
the personal qualities and ways of acting of the staff – a point which highlights the
need for new forms of staff-training, as called for also by Rosen (2006). In addi-
tion, Rosen believes that mental health service users should be seen as empowered
agents, with the focus shifting away from (merely) their disabilities. This once again
calls for skills on the part of the psychiatrist, who requires expertise in transdisci-
plinary team work, and in orientation and relational work. He/she is not merely an
expert in diagnosing and in prescribing medication – although these skills are
needed as well. While visiting Western Lapland, Robert Whitaker (2010) noted
some elements of the new culture.
Psychosis 11
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Page 13
Limitations of the study
Because of the aim that the findings should have as high a level of external validity
as possible, the reliability of some elements of the research methods could not be
optimally guaranteed. All the ratings were used as a part of everyday clinical prac-
tice. This being so, the ratings from GAF and BPRS should only be seen as approxi-
mate indicators of psychological status and symptoms. They merely support the
information taken from more objective indicators involving the number of hospital
days, the number of relapses, and the employment status. Another problem arises
from Western Lapland being a relatively small province. With such low-incidence
problems as psychosis, long inclusion periods are needed if one is to have sufficient
observations. During such long inclusion periods, possible changes in the local cul-
ture cannot be standardized, meaning that conclusions are less firm concerning the
factors that may be most important in causing changes.
On the other hand, the small size of the province can also work as an advan-
tage. Because no other mental health services are available, we can be fairly confi-
dent that all psychotic problems fell within the system described in this paper.
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