Abhishek Ghosh, Subodh Bn, Kshitiz Sharma, Fazl e Roub, Tathagata Mahintamani, Debasish Basu and Surendra Kumar Mattoo
Individuals with dual diagnoses might experience significant clinical and social vulnerabilities during the pandemic and lockdown. This study aims to compare medication adherence…
Abstract
Purpose
Individuals with dual diagnoses might experience significant clinical and social vulnerabilities during the pandemic and lockdown. This study aims to compare medication adherence, substance use, clinical stability and overall functioning before and during lockdown periods.
Design/methodology/approach
This was a cross-sectional survey among patients registered in dual diagnosis clinic of an addiction psychiatry center in Northern India between March 2019 and February 2020. This study approached 250 patients for telephonic interviews. This study assessed adherence to medications with the brief adherence rating scale (BARS). Global functioning was measured by global assessment of functioning. Clinical interviews assessed substance use and the clinical status of psychiatric disorders.
Findings
One hundred fifty patients were recruited. The mean age of the sample was 35.8 years. The sample had a slight preponderance of alcohol dependence. Depressive disorder was the largest category of psychiatric diagnosis. Compared to prelockdown period, during the lockdown, there were an increased number of days of nonadherence (X2 17.61, p < 0.05), proportion of patients underdosing (X2 8.96, p = 0.003) and lower BARS scores (t = 10.52, df = 144, p < 0.0001). More patients were abstinent from substances during the lockdown (X2 49.02, p < 0.0001). Clinical stability of psychiatric disorders did not differ during the two-time points, but overall functioning decreased during the lockdown (t = 2.118, p = 0.036). This study observed a small positive correlation (r = 0.2, p = 0.02) between functioning and adherence levels.
Originality/value
Lockdown was associated with poor medication adherence, change in substance use patterns and functional impairment. In the future, treatment programs and policies must take preemptive steps to minimize the effects of restrictions.
Details
Keywords
Yatan Pal Singh Balhara, Abhishek Ghosh, Siddharth Sarkar, Jayant Mahadevan, Arghya Pal, Venkata Lakshmi Narasimha, Dheeraj Kattula, Sambhu Prasad, Arpit Parmar, Preethy Kathiresan, Anirudha Basu, Gayatri Bhatia, Raghav Shah, Naveen Kumar Dhagudu, Richa Tripathi and Balaji Bharadwaj
This study aims to offer an overview of the models of clinical care of the patients with dual disorders in India.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to offer an overview of the models of clinical care of the patients with dual disorders in India.
Design/methodology/approach
All the members of the Dual Diagnosis India Network (DDIN) who shared the clinical care delivery at their center were invited to share the details of their model. In addition, an invite was also sent to those members who could not attend the online session but were interested in contributing the required information about their model. The information shared by the respondents was collated. The different models were then categorized based on their features.
Findings
Following the categorization of the clinical care services organization across different settings, five different models emerged. These were specialized dual diagnosis clinic; services for dual disorders offered as substance use disorder (SUD) treatment services within general psychiatry care; services for dual disorders in general psychiatry care; services for dual disorders offered as SUD treatment services separated from general psychiatry care; and services for dual disorders offered in general psychiatry services combined with exclusive SUD treatment services.
Originality/value
Currently, there is limited literature on models of dual disorders from the low- and middle-income countries. The authors believe that the documentation of these models from India shall be of help while setting up services for dual disorders in other health-care settings. This study can be a valuable resource for making informed choices while setting up new services.