Individual differences in psychiatric rehabilitation success, depending on mood state at the time of admission

Abstract

Background: New approaches of Austrian rehabilitation programs focus on the prevention of mental illnesses and offer treatment not only to mentally impaired individuals, but also to people, who are at risk of developing a mental disorder or have recovered from one. Aim of the study was to compare the rehabilitation success of depressed and euthymic patients. Methods: 157 patients were recruited from a psychosomatic rehabilitation center for governmental employees. They were divided into two groups, "depressed" (n=59) and "euthymic†(n=98), using the Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI-II) and the Hamilton-Depression-Scale (HAMD). The participants completed the Maslach Burnout Inventory – General Survey (MBI), the Symptom Checklist – Revised (SCL-R) and the Stress Coping Questionnaire (SVF) at the beginning and the end of the 6-weeks rehabilitation program. Multivariate variance analyses with repeated measures were applied to accesses differences. Findings: Age, sex, body mass index and verbal intelligence did not significantly differ in the two groups. After six weeks, both groups showed significantly lower psychiatric symptoms (BDI-II, HAMD, SCL-R) and reported a significantly lower use of negative coping strategies (SVF). Burnout symptoms (MBI-GS) only improved in the euthymic group. Discussion: In general, there was a strong positive rehabilitation effect. Remarkably, the burnout symptoms only decreased significantly in the euthymic group. Euthymic patients seem to be able to focus on their stress management skills, while depressed patients primarily concentrate on improving psychiatric symptoms. These results underline the importance of psychiatric/psychosomatic rehabilitation programs for mentally ill as well as remitted patients, and as a preventive measure.