Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries
The objective of this study was to explore current provisions within forensic mental health inpatient services for people who require longer-term care within Europe. We used a structured questionnaire and follow-up semi-structured interviews with experts in forensic psychiatry in 18 European countri...
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| Format: | Article |
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Taylor & Francis
2016
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| Online Access: | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/40204/ |
| _version_ | 1848796006753239040 |
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| author | Sampson, Stephanie Edworthy, Rachel Völlm, Birgit Bulten, Erik |
| author_facet | Sampson, Stephanie Edworthy, Rachel Völlm, Birgit Bulten, Erik |
| author_sort | Sampson, Stephanie |
| building | Nottingham Research Data Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | The objective of this study was to explore current provisions within forensic mental health inpatient services for people who require longer-term care within Europe. We used a structured questionnaire and follow-up semi-structured interviews with experts in forensic psychiatry in 18 European countries. All experts interviewed acknowledged the issue of ‘long-stay’ in forensic psychiatry with patient characteristics including chronic mental disorder, treatment-resistance and violent behavior. Formal and informal definitions of ‘long-stay’ varied widely between countries. Eight experts stated that long-stay services are currently available in their country. Of the countries without long-stay services, five experts expressed a need develop them. Improved quality of life and promotion of wellbeing were emphasized as the fundamental treatment philosophy. Even without an agreed definition of ‘long-stay’, it is clear that a proportion of mentally disordered offenders (MDOs) are ‘stuck’ in ‘the system’. Experts shared common concerns in terms of political pressures to contain dangerous MDOs for ensuring public safety as well as ethical debates regarding long-term forensic mental health care. Further research is required to promote dialogue between and within countries to address the balance of patient' rights and public safety, and to produce longitudinal and economic analyses of existing long-stay forensic service provisions. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:41:07Z |
| format | Article |
| id | nottingham-40204 |
| institution | University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T19:41:07Z |
| publishDate | 2016 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | nottingham-402042020-05-04T18:21:26Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/40204/ Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries Sampson, Stephanie Edworthy, Rachel Völlm, Birgit Bulten, Erik The objective of this study was to explore current provisions within forensic mental health inpatient services for people who require longer-term care within Europe. We used a structured questionnaire and follow-up semi-structured interviews with experts in forensic psychiatry in 18 European countries. All experts interviewed acknowledged the issue of ‘long-stay’ in forensic psychiatry with patient characteristics including chronic mental disorder, treatment-resistance and violent behavior. Formal and informal definitions of ‘long-stay’ varied widely between countries. Eight experts stated that long-stay services are currently available in their country. Of the countries without long-stay services, five experts expressed a need develop them. Improved quality of life and promotion of wellbeing were emphasized as the fundamental treatment philosophy. Even without an agreed definition of ‘long-stay’, it is clear that a proportion of mentally disordered offenders (MDOs) are ‘stuck’ in ‘the system’. Experts shared common concerns in terms of political pressures to contain dangerous MDOs for ensuring public safety as well as ethical debates regarding long-term forensic mental health care. Further research is required to promote dialogue between and within countries to address the balance of patient' rights and public safety, and to produce longitudinal and economic analyses of existing long-stay forensic service provisions. Taylor & Francis 2016-11-11 Article PeerReviewed Sampson, Stephanie, Edworthy, Rachel, Völlm, Birgit and Bulten, Erik (2016) Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries. International Journal of Forensic Mental Health, 15 (4). pp. 333-351. ISSN 1932-9903 forensic psychiatry mentally disordered offenders long-stay services European comparison http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14999013.2016.1221484 doi:10.1080/14999013.2016.1221484 doi:10.1080/14999013.2016.1221484 |
| spellingShingle | forensic psychiatry mentally disordered offenders long-stay services European comparison Sampson, Stephanie Edworthy, Rachel Völlm, Birgit Bulten, Erik Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title | Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title_full | Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title_fullStr | Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title_full_unstemmed | Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title_short | Long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 European countries |
| title_sort | long-term forensic mental health services: an exploratory comparison of 18 european countries |
| topic | forensic psychiatry mentally disordered offenders long-stay services European comparison |
| url | https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/40204/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/40204/ https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/40204/ |