Clinical, socio-demographic and environmental factors in the Duration of Untreated Psychosis, among patients with First Episode of Psychosis

Kaminska, Karolina (2021) Clinical, socio-demographic and environmental factors in the Duration of Untreated Psychosis, among patients with First Episode of Psychosis. Doctoral thesis, University of East Anglia.

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Abstract

Background: The concept of duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) is important as it is known to affect treatment outcomes for people with First Episode of Psychosis (FEP). However, previous research is inconsistent in what factors impact DUP. Therefore, the aim of this thesis portfolio was to examine a range of determinants (social, clinical, and environmental) associated with DUP in people with FEP.

Methods: A systematic review was carried out to explore how stigma, social networks, and social support impact DUP for people with FEP. An empirical paper examined which socio-demographic (e.g., age, gender, ethnicity), clinical (mode of onset of psychosis) and environmental (rural-urban status) factors are associated with DUP.

Results: The systematic review synthesised the findings of qualitative and quantitative studies and described how people with FEP who experience internalised stigma, fear that they would be discriminated or labelled by others, and face stigma and fear related to mental health services, have longer treatment delays. In terms of social networks and social support, the findings were heterogeneous. The potential interaction between stigma and social networks was further explored. The empirical paper, adopting a quantitative design, revealed that rural-urban status was not significantly associated with DUP. However, long DUP was associated with an insidious mode of onset of psychosis. There was also no strong evidence that socio-demographic factors such as gender, ethnicity or employment status differed in DUP. However, the results highlighted weak evidence that adolescents and minority ethnic group patients might have longer DUP, but this needs further investigation.

Conclusions: The findings emphasize that there might be multiple, and potentially interacting factors which impact DUP. However, due to limitations of both studies, further research is required to enable a better understanding of these complex processes. This could inform the development of effective initiatives to reduce DUP.

Item Type:	Thesis (Doctoral)
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School
Depositing User:	Chris White
Date Deposited:	14 Nov 2024 08:43
Last Modified:	14 Nov 2024 08:43
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/97680
DOI:

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