Perception of inpatients following remission of a manic episode in bipolar I disorder on a group-based Psychoeducation program: a qualitative study

Background: This forms the first study of a group-based psychoeducation program for inpatients following remission of a manic episode in patients suffering from bipolar I disorder in a Chinese population. The aim was to explore the patient's perspectives of the program and their suggestions regarding ways to improve the intervention in the future. Methods: Semi-structured and in-depth interviews were conducted with 15 participants who had participated in 8 sessions of a group psychoeducation program over 2 weeks. The verbatim transcripts of those interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: Five themes emerged from the data, including the patients' perception of participating in the program, their perception of the setting, perception of participating in a group program, perception of the learning content and of the outcome of participating in the program. Conclusions: The results presented here describe how the short-term group psychoeducation program was experienced by the patients. Recommendations are also offered to improve the setting, content, and delivery. Our findings provide evidence that the program is beneficial for manic patients with bipolar I disorder, and this intervention warrants further research especially in a Chinese population. If these benefits are confirmed in future studies, this program could be incorporated into routine psychiatric inpatient care in China.