Families In Intervention Group Research Articles

The Father's Part: A Pilot Evaluation of a Father-Centered Family Intervention Group in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Changes in parental roles have renewed the focus on a father's involvement in an offspring's psychological development. However, fathers are still under-represented in family research. There are only a few structured father-centered intervention programs in child and adolescent psychiatry. In a German population sample, a pilot father-centered family intervention program with n = 16 participants, conducted in person (n = 8) and online (n = 8), in a child and adolescent psychiatry inpatient/day clinic setting was evaluated by comparing paternal stress, PSE, and child-rated paternal competence in a pre-post design. Participating fathers showed significant decreases in child-related parenting stress (presence: p = 0.042, online: p = 0.047) and significant increases in PSE (p = 0.006/0.012). Parent-related stress and child-rated paternal competence were unaffected (p = 0.108/0.171; p = 0.167/0.101), while small-to-medium effect size measures pointed in the direction of our hypothesis (d = 0.48/0.36; d = 0.37/0.50). Participant satisfaction was higher in person than online (p = 0.008). As social and biological fathers have important influences on child and adolescent well-being and development, they should be included more frequently in prevention and intervention programs. Fathers seem to benefit from gender-specific intervention programs with regard to stress reduction, as well as experiencing competence- and PSE-increasing effects.

Investigating the Effectiveness of a Family Intervention after Acquired Brain or Spinal Cord Injury: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

(1) Background: Acquired brain injury (ABI) or spinal cord injury (SCI) constitutes a severe life change for the entire family, often resulting in decreased quality of life (QoL) and increased caregiver burden. The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of a family intervention in individuals with ABI or SCI and in their family members. (2) Methods: An RCT of a family intervention group (FIG) vs. a psychoeducational group (PEG) (ratio 1:1) was performed. The FIG received an eight-week manual-based family intervention, and the PEG received one psychoeducational session. Self-reported questionnaires on QoL with the Mental Component Summary (MCS) and on caregiver burden with the Caregiver Burden Scale (CBS) were the primary outcomes. The data analysis involved linear mixed-effects regression models. (3) Results: In total, 74 participants were allocated randomly to the FIG and 84 were allocated randomly to the PEG. The FIG had significantly larger improvements on the MCS and significantly larger reductions on the CBS at the two-month follow-up than participants in the PEG (mean differences of 5.64 points on the MCS and -0.26 points on the CBS). At the eight-month follow-up, the between-group difference remained significant (mean difference of 4.59 points) on the MCS, whereas that on the CBS was borderline significant (mean change of -0.14 points). (4) Conclusions: Family intervention was superior to psychoeducation, with larger improvements in QoL and larger reductions in caregiver burden.

Child-Owned Poultry Intervention Effects on Hemoglobin, Anemia, Concurrent Anemia and Stunting, and Morbidity Status of Young Children in Southern Ethiopia: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Community Trial.

Cereal-based diets contribute to anemia in Ethiopian children. Eggs have nutrients to boost hemoglobin levels as well as counter concurrent anemia and stunting (CAS) and morbidity status. A community trial, targeting 6-18 months old children, was conducted in Halaba. Two clusters were randomly selected and allocated to intervention (N = 122) and control (N = 121) arms. Intervention group (IG) children received egg-laying hens with caging in a cultural ceremony declaring child ownership of the chickens. Parents promised to feed eggs to the child. Health and agriculture extension workers promoted egg feeding, poultry husbandry, and sanitation to IG families. Control group (CG) had standard health and agriculture education. At baseline, groups were not different by hemoglobin, anemia, CAS, and morbidity status. Mean hemoglobin was 11.0 mg/dl and anemia prevalence was 41.6%. About 11.9% of children had CAS and 52.3% were sick. Using generalized estimating equations, the intervention increased hemoglobin by 0.53 g/dl (ß:0.53; p < 0.001; 95%CI: 0.28-0.79). IG children were 64% (p < 0.001; odds ratio [OR]:0.36; 95%CI: 0.24-0.54) and 57% (p = 0.007; OR: 0.43; 95%CI: 0.21-0.73) less likely to be anemic and have CAS, respectively, than CG, with no difference in morbidity. Child-owned poultry intervention is recommended in settings where anemia is high and animal-source food intake is low.

A Serious Game for the Prevention of Obesity in School Children-Impact of Parent's Involvement: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

Serious games convey information and use interactive components to reinforce and train behaviours. A serious game addressing nutrition, physical activity and stress coping—the Kids Obesity Prevention Program (KOP)—was previously evaluated for efficacy in children. This study aimed at evaluating the KOP-game regarding: (i) its acceptance and efficacy with respect to parents of primary school children receiving the same game intervention as the children; and (ii) whether the children could benefit by parental involvement. A randomized controlled trial with two groups of children aged 9 to 12 years was conducted which included a 6-month follow-up period. All children played the game twice in two weeks. In the family-intervention group, the parents additionally played the game. The primary outcome was the gain in knowledge in parents and children measured with a pretested questionnaire. The secondary outcomes were knowledge maintenance as well as several behavior changes. Parents and children in both groups improved and maintained their knowledge equally. The KOP-game increases knowledge of nutrition in children independently of the involvement of their parents. KOP games are well accepted in children; further research should examine the structured involvement of parents.

A synergistic effect between family intervention and rTMS improves cognitive and negative symptoms in schizophrenia: A randomized controlled trial

ObjectiveThe present study explored an efficient new therapy that combined repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and family intervention in addition to risperidone to improve schizophrenia. MethodsA randomized controlled trial (January 2016–September 2017) involving 200 patients, of which 188 patients completed the 12-week study, and 50 controls were conducted in the research. The patients were randomly assigned to 12 weeks of treatment with risperidone alone (risperidone group), rTMS and risperidone (rTMS group), family intervention and risperidone (family intervention group), rTMS and risperidone plus family intervention (combined group). MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery (MCCB) and the Positive and Negative Symptoms Scale (PANSS) were used to evaluate treatment efficacy. Repeated measures analysis of variance (RMANOVA) were performed to evaluate different treatment efficacy between four groups after 12 weeks of treatment. Results(1) There were no significant differences in sex, age, education, cognitive function, or PANSS scores between the four groups at baseline (p's > 0.05). (2) There was a significant decrease in the PANSS scores and an increase in the MCCB scores after 12 weeks of treatment in all groups (time effect p's < 0.001). (3) The improvements in positive symptoms and negative symptoms were more obvious in the combined group than in other groups (p's < 0.05). (4) The combined group showed the superior effect in cognition function after 12 weeks. (5) And, interestingly, a remarkable synergistic effect between rTMS and family intervention therapy was observed. ConclusionThere was a synergistic effect between rTMS and the family intervention as an effective combined therapy in improving schizophrenia.This study is registered with Chictr.org, number ChiCTR1900024422 (http://www.chictr.org.cn/edit.aspx?pid=34285&htm=4).

Effects of Strength Based Supportive Therapy on Family Functioning and Coping among Persons with Alcohol Dependence Syndrome

Background: Alcohol dependence is a complex behaviour with far-reaching harmful effects on the family, work, society, as well as on the physical and mental health of the individual. Epidemiological studies conducted in India showed that 20-30% of our population is using alcohol at a harmful level. Mental health professionals provide support and understanding of the illness for the affected individual and family members. They work together on planning treatment; provide mutual support and understanding of the disorder. Aim: To study the effects of strength based supportive therapy on family functioning and coping of persons with alcohol dependence syndrome. Methodology: This was a hospital based intervention study. It had adopted the quasi-experimental before and after with control group research design. Participants were randomly allocated to the experimental and control groups. 10 persons with alcohol dependence syndrome were selected for the study  five each person with alcohol dependence syndrome and their family members were assigned in the control group (treatment as usual group; TAU) and five persons with alcohol dependence syndrome and their family members were assigned in the experimental group (treatment as usual positive family intervention group). Family functioning was assessed through McMaster family assessment device Patients were assessed through brief cope. Result: The study results indicated a significant improvement in various domains of family functioning in experimental group participants compared to the treatment as usual group. It has also noted improvement in coping among patients. Conclusion: strength based supportive intervention useful for the caregivers as well as it also helps in improving coping among person with alcohol dependence syndrome.

Home-Based Early Intervention and the Influence of Family Resources on Cognitive Development.

To investigate whether early developmental intervention (EDI) can positively affect the trajectories of cognitive development among children from low-resource families. Longitudinal analyses were conducted of data from 293 children in the Brain Research to Ameliorate Impaired Neurodevelopment Home-based Intervention Trial, a randomized controlled trial of a home-based EDI program, to examine trajectories of Bayley Scales of Infant Development-Second Edition Mental Development Index (MDI) scores from 12 to 36 months of age among young children from high- and low-resource families in 3 low- to middle-resource countries. A 3-way interaction among family resources, intervention group, and age was statistically significant after controlling for maternal, child, and birth characteristics (Wald χ(2)(1) = 9.41, P = .002). Among children of families with high resources, both the intervention and control groups had significant increases in MDI scores over time (P < .001 and P = .002, respectively), and 36-month MDI scores for these 2 groups did not differ significantly (P = .602). However, in families with low resources, the EDI group displayed greater improvement, resulting in significantly higher 36-month MDI scores than the control group (P < .001). In addition, the 36-month MDI scores for children in families with low resources receiving EDI did not differ significantly from children from high-resource families in either the EDI (P = .509) or control (P = .882) groups. A home-based EDI during the first 3 years of life can substantially decrease the developmental gap between children from families with lower versus higher resources, even among children in low- to middle-resource countries.

Efficacy of a family intervention programme for prevention of hospitalisation in patients with schizophrenia. A naturalistic multicenter controlled and randomised study in Spain

BackgroundAccording to most relevant guidelines, family psycho-educational interventions are considered to be one of the most effective psychosocial treatments for people with schizophrenia. The main outcome measure in controlled and randomised studies has been the prevention of relapses and admissions, and encouragement of compliance, although some questions remain about its applicability and results in clinical practice. ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and implementation of a single family psychoeducational intervention in ‘real’ conditions for people diagnosed with schizophrenia. MethodsA total of 88 families were randomised in two groups. The family intervention group received a 12months psychoeducational treatment, and the other group followed normal standard treatment. Assessments were made at baseline, at 12 and at 18months. The main outcome measure was hospitalisation, and secondary outcome measures were clinical condition (BPRS-E) and social disability (DAS-II). ResultsA total of 71 patients finished the study (34 family intervention group and 37 control group). Patients who received family intervention reduced the risk of hospitalisation by 40% (p=.4018; 95%CI: 0.1833–0.6204). Symptomatology improved significantly at 12 months (p=.4018; 95%CI: 0.1833–0.6204), but not at 18 months (p=.4018; 95%CI: 0.1833–0.6204). Social disability was significantly reduced in the family intervention group at 12months and 18months. ConclusionsFamily psychoeducational intervention reduces hospitalisation risk and improves clinical condition and social functioning of people with schizophrenia.

The effectiveness of psychoeducational family intervention for patients with schizophrenia in a 14-year follow-up study in a Chinese rural area.

It is unclear if the impact of psychoeducational family intervention for patients with schizophrenia can be sustained over 10 years. In this study, we explored the 14-year effect of psychoeducational family intervention for patients with schizophrenia in a Chinese rural area. The data from a cluster randomized control trial (CRCT) study of psychoeducational family intervention in a 14-year follow-up was analyzed. All patients with schizophrenia (n=326) who participated in the CRCT drawn from six townships in Xinjin County of Chengdu in 1994, of whom 238 (73.0%) who were still alive, and their informants were followed up in 2008. The Patients Follow-up Scale, the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Global Assessment of Functioning were used in the follow-up study. There were no significant differences of marital status, mean scores of PANSS positive symptoms, negative symptoms, general mental health, and total scores among the psychoeducational family intervention, medication, and control groups in 2008. The psychoeducational family intervention group had a significantly higher rate of antipsychotic medication and a higher level of work ability than other two groups. The control group had a significantly higher rate of never-treated (26.0%) than psychoeducational family intervention group (6.5%). Psychoeducational family intervention might be still effective in the 14-year follow-up, especially in patients' treatment adherence/compliance and social functioning. Psychoeducational family intervention might be more effective in places where family members frequently participated in patients' care and had a lower level of knowledge on mental illness. Family intervention should be considered when making mental health policy and planning mental health services.

Eficacia de un programa de intervención familiar en la prevención de hospitalización en pacientes esquizofrénicos. Un estudio multicéntrico, controlado y aleatorizado en España

According to most relevant guidelines, family psycho-educational interventions are considered to be one the most effective psychosocial treatments for people with schizophrenia. The main outcome measure in controlled and randomized studies has been prevention of relapses and admissions, and encouragement of compliance, although some questions remain about its applicability and results in clinical practice.The aim of study was to evaluate the efficacy and implementation of a single family psychoeducational intervention in 'real' conditions for people diagnosed with schizophrenia.A total of 88 families were randomized in two groups. The family intervention group received a 12 months psychoeducational treatment, and the other group followed normal standard treatment. Assessments were made at baseline, at 12 and at 18 months. The main outcome measure was hospitalization, and secondary outcome measures were clinical condition (BPRS-E) and social disability (DAS-II).A total of 71 patients finished the study (34 family intervention group and 37 control group). Patients who received family intervention reduced the risk of hospitalization by 40% (P = .4018; 95%CI: 0.1833-0.6204). Symptomatology improved significantly at 12 months (P = .4018; 95%CI: 0.1833-0.6204), but not at 18 months (P = .4018; 95%CI: 0.1833-0.6204). Social disability was significantly reduced in the family intervention group at 12 months and 18 months.Family psychoeducational intervention reduces hospitalization risk and improves clinical condition and social functioning of people with schizophrenia.

Efficacy and effectiveness of individual family intervention on social and clinical functioning and family burden in severe schizophrenia: a 2-year randomized controlled study

Empirical evidence of the efficacy and effectiveness of psychosocial family intervention and of the specificity of its effects on the course of schizophrenia is limited. The aim was to study the efficacy and effectiveness of psychosocial family intervention with regard to clinical and social functioning and family burden after controlling for compliance and several prognostic factors. A 2-year randomized controlled trial with blind assessments. Fifty patients with DSM-IV schizophrenia and persistent positive symptoms and/or previous clinical relapse were allocated to psychosocial family intervention, individual counselling and standard treatment versus individual counselling and standard treatment. Family intervention was associated with fewer clinical relapses, hospitalizations and major incidents, and an improvement in positive and negative symptoms, social role performance, social relations, employment and family burden. The reduction in hospitalizations in the family intervention group was significantly greater than that observed in the group of patients who refused to participate but this was not the case for the control group. The effects of family intervention were independent of compliance and prognostic factors. Family intervention is effective in severe schizophrenia independently of compliance and prognostic factors.

Discuss on the function of holistic family intervention in community intervention of hypertension

Objective To study the function of holistic family intervention in community intervention of hypertension. Methods 106 eases with hypertension at stage Ⅰ orⅡwere randomly divided into the control group (50 cases) and the family intervention group (56 cases). In the control group, individual risk factors of the patients were analyzed and intervention was performed. In the family intervention group, apart from that clone in the control group, health conditions of the patients' family were assessed to find out the family risk factors. Then guidance and intervention were given to the family intervention group against the bad factors All family members were mobilized to take part in this assessment. Six months after the intervention, nurses in the community stopped visiting the patients and their family (i.e.,stopped the external intervention).Blood pressure, BMI, blood lipid, behavior and changes of life style were reviewed at 6th and 12th months(i.e.,6 months after the external intervention was stopped). Results Six months after the intervention, changes of systolic pressure, diets, frequency and means of exercise in the family intervention group were more significant than those in the control group (P<0.05 or P<0.01).Twelve months after the intervention, all indexes except BMI in the family intervention group were better than those of the control group (P<0.05 orP<0.01). The rebound of unhealthy behavior in the family intervention group was less than that in the control group. Conclusions Improvements of blood pressure, blood lipid, behavior and life style in the family intervention are more stable and persistent than those in the simple individual intervention. Key words: Holistic family intervention; Hypertension; Community intervention

Effectiveness of a psycho-educational intervention for reducing burden in latin american families of patients with schizophrenia

To explore the effectiveness of a psycho-educational family intervention program for reducing burden in caregivers of patients with schizophrenia in a developing country. Forty-five caregivers participated, 22 in a psycho-educational family intervention group and 23 in a control group. The family program was held once a week for 5 months. In the control group the caregivers received standard intervention, comprising periodical meetings with the staff to monitor the effects of the medication. Burden was measured before and after the intervention: relatives in the psycho-educational group were evaluated at inclusion and at the end of the program; controls were evaluated at inclusion and 5 months later. Burden decreased significantly in the psycho-educational group; mean scores on the Zarit Caregiver Burden Scale fell from 85.06 pre-intervention to 52.44 post-intervention, while scores fell only slightly in the control group, from 87.65 to 87.22. Treatment was especially effective in mothers and caregivers with lower educational levels. This intervention program for reducing caregiver burden in developing Latin American countries was effective. Future investigations should focus on obtaining more precise estimates of the contributions of specific components of these programs to reducing burden.

Do all people with schizophrenia receive the same benefit from different family intervention programs?

The study evaluated baseline characteristics that could be used to predict the outcome of family intervention in schizophrenia and focussed on identifying the subgroups of patients who were more likely to respond to one therapeutic modality than another. We conducted a controlled trial in which participants were assigned at random to either a Behavioral Family Intervention Group or a Relatives' Group. Patients in one catchment area, having suffered one psychotic relapse within the previous year and living with their families, were assessed by an independent evaluator at baseline and 12 months later. Some clinical and family factors such as the duration of illness, number of hospital admissions and relatives' level of psychological distress can predict the differential outcome of either type of family intervention modality. The results suggested that the short-term illness group requires more intensive and personal intervention, while the long-term illness group needs more continuous support. Our results should be confirmed in a larger sample before clinical recommendations can be made.

Randomised-Control Trial of Family Intervention for 78 First-Episode Male Schizophrenic Patients

At the time of discharge from their first stay in psychiatric hospital, 78 male schizophrenic patients were randomly assigned to a family intervention (experimental) group or a 'standard care' control group and were followed for the next 18 months. The family intervention consisted of both group and individual counselling sessions every 1-3 months that focused on education about the illness and on methods of dealing with the patient. There was a significantly lower rate of hospital readmission in the family intervention group than in the control group (15.4% versus 53.8%, chi 2 = 12.75, P < 0.01), and the mean hospital-free period for those who were readmitted was significantly longer in the experimental group than in the control group (245 days versus 130 days, t = 2.91, P < 0.01). Moreover, the clinical status and overall level of functioning in patients who were not readmitted were significantly better in experimental subjects than in control subjects. Stratified analysis showed that family intervention and regular use of medication had independent and additive effects on the outcome. During the 18 months after the index discharge patients who did not take medication regularly and who did not receive family intervention were 7.9 times as likely to be readmitted to hospital as patients who took medication regularly and received family intervention.

Community management of schizophrenia. A two-year follow-up of a behavioural intervention with families.

The relapse and readmission rates of schizophrenic patients who participated in a controlled trial of a nine-month behavioural family intervention trial based on the EE status of their relatives are presented at two years. The patients who received the behavioural family intervention had lower rates of relapse and readmission than patients from high-EE homes who had received a short educational programme or routine treatment. The relapse rate of the behavioural family intervention group (33%) was the same as that of the low-EE group (33%), and significantly lower than that of the non-intervention high-EE group (59%).