Two-stage integrated care versus antipsychotic medication alone on outcomes of schizophrenia: One-year randomized controlled trial and follow-up

Integrated care can reduce rate of relapse and improve personal and social functions in patients with schizophrenia. We established and evaluated a new model of "intensive-consolidation" two-stage integrated care (IC) for inpatients with schizophrenia. Data were collected between 2012 and 2015. Chinese inpatients with schizophrenia (n = 170) diagnosed according to DSM-IV were randomly assigned to antipsychotic medication alone (n = 84) or two-stage IC (n = 86) and followed up for 12 months. The IC model included intensive treatments (antipsychotics plus the cognitive behavior therapy and rehabilitation treatment) during hospitalization and 3-time consolidation treatments with 3-month intervals at clinics. Outcome measures included the rate of relapse, psychiatric symptoms and social functioning. Compared with medication-alone group, the rate of relapse were significantly lower in IC group (p = 0.012); the Mixed-Effects Model for Repeated-Measures analyses showed that the IC group significantly improved in positive symptoms over time; greater improvement in self care and less aggressive behaviors were observed over time in IC group (all p < 0.008). The findings support the feasibility and effectiveness of the new two-stage model of integrated care as an intervention for middle-acute phase inpatients with schizophrenia. The model is particularly informative to countries where medical resources are mainly distributed in developed regions.