Effectiveness of community treatment orders for treatment of schizophrenia with oral or depot antipsychotic medication: Changes in problem behaviours and social functioning

Abstract

Objective: Involuntary outpatient commitment (IOC) has been in use in various countries for a number of years and has recently been implemented (in the form of supervised community treatment) in England and Wales. Several studies indicate that IOC reduces relapse and readmission rates and decreases length of stay on inpatient units in patients diagnosed with schizophrenia. The aim of the present study was to examine whether the use of IOC in the Australian context, in the form of community treatment orders (CTOs), may be associated with a reduction in problem behaviours and improved social functioning. Method: A naturalistic retrospective mirror image study of case notes, with each case serv..