Assertive community treatment for persons with severe mental disorders: A controlled treatment outcome study

The present study evaluated the efficacy of an Assertive Community Treatmen t (ACT) program for the seriously mentally ill. Outcomes of the program wer e assessed at baseline and 12-month follow-lip and were compared with that of a control group, which received standard community care. Thirty-six subj ects with serious mental disorders participated in the study. Dependent mea sures included number of hospital admissions and hospital bed days per year , life skills, quality of life, and psychiatric symptoms. Results of 2 x 2 (treatment/control group x baseline / Ii-month follow-up) repeated measures ANOVAs indicated that, after 1 year, both treatments lead to a significant reduction in hospital admissions and bed days, and to improvement in life skills. ACT subjects evidenced a greater decrease in psychiatric symptoms c ompared to control group subjects. In general, markedly more ACT subjects s howed reliable clinical change in life skills, quality of life, and psychia tric symptoms than control subjects. Although the ACT did produce greater c linical change than standard case management, it did not produce statistica lly greater improvement across most domains of functioning in the short ter m.