Introduction Seminar About Patient Participation, Treatment Options and Decisional Preferences for Psychiatric Outpatients on Waiting List

Patient participation (PP) in Hospital is a goal defined by the Norwegian Health Authorities and it is a mandatory activity for District Psychiatric out-patient Centres (DPC) in Norway: patients are entitled to have influence on their treatment and should receive sufficient information directed at empowerment. Nevertheless, studies from Norway have found that patients who seek help are dissatisfied with the information they receive and doubt their possibility for real influence on their treatment. One way to improve individual PP might be to give patients sufficient information and education before they start their treatment in the form of an educational group intervention, an introduction seminar (IS); this group intervention is less time and resource consuming than individual interventions.

Aims: The main purpose of this project is to develop and evaluate an IS for patients on a waiting list of DPC. The seminar will educate patients, so they can actively participate in their own treatment and, thereby, choosing treatment, reducing the risk of dropping out of treatment. Another aim is to enable patients to participate in their own treatment, to cope with their problems while they are waiting for treatment by providing them contact with primary health care and user organizations during their waiting time, and to increase adherence.

Methods: The project involves three components: an exploratory study of educational content of the seminar; RCT of that 4-hours program (to examine its effect on treatment preferences and choices, activation, satisfaction, mental health and cost-benefit) and then a post-seminar qualitative evaluation, which will be used to create a broad yet deep understanding of the practical side of the participants'experience and the seminar's effect.