Intervention to improve level of overall functioning and mental condition of adolescents at high risk of developing first‐episode psychosis in Finland

Abstract

Being at high risk of developing psychosis has been suggested to be a result of a combination of acute life stressors and trait-like vulnerability to psychosis. Reducing levels of stress could support overall functioning and mental condition in those at risk. The Jorvi Early Psychosis Recognition and Intervention (JERI) project at Helsinki University Central Hospital, Jorvi Hospital, Finland, is an early intervention team for adolescents at risk of developing first-episode psychosis. The project is based on the idea of multiprofessional, community, home, family and network-oriented, stress-reducing, overall functioning-supporting, low-threshold care. The JERI team meets multiprofessionally with adolescents in their natural surroundings, for example, at school or at home, together with their parents, network and community co-worker, who has originally contacted the JERI team because of unclear mental health problems. Subjects were assessed with the PROD-prodromal screen to identify those at risk of developing first-episode psychosis. Statistically significant difference between baseline and follow-up measures was found in at risk subjects (n = 28) in scales of overall functioning (P = 0.000), depression (P = 0.001), anxiety (P = 0.001), quality of life (QOL) and pre-psychotic symptoms. JERI-type intervention may improve level of overall functioning and support mental condition in adolescents at risk of developing first-episode psychosis, even though further study with larger numbers of subjects, with a control group and with a longer follow-up time, is needed.