Aims. Foster family care for adults suffering from mental illnesses (FFCA) consists in placing people who are in treatment by the psychiatric services in families other than their original one. The study describes the diffusion of this practice today in Italy and provides a historical picture comparing the present results with those available for the years 1902 and 1999. Method. Two hundred and eleven Heads of Italian Mental Health Departments (MHD) were contacted. In the case of active services, the following data were obtained: date the experience began, organization, users, and reference regulations. The Questionnaire was completed with items concerning future intentions to begin an FFCA service, and knowledge of similar experiences world-wide. Data were compared with those from previous national surveys. Results. Of the 211 MHD contacted, 194 departments participated; among these, FFCA services were active in 34. From a comparison with previous surveys, a positive trend for the growth and diffusion of FFCA was found nation-wide over the last fifteen years. Conclusions. The new direction that Italian psychiatry has taken towards community-based services, also in regard to what emerges from this study, includes FFCA as a new resource for residential care in the psychiatric field.

[Adults foster family care in Italian mental health services: a survey].

FURLAN, Piermaria;OSTACOLI, Luca;PICCI, Rocco Luigi
2010-01-01

Abstract

Aims. Foster family care for adults suffering from mental illnesses (FFCA) consists in placing people who are in treatment by the psychiatric services in families other than their original one. The study describes the diffusion of this practice today in Italy and provides a historical picture comparing the present results with those available for the years 1902 and 1999. Method. Two hundred and eleven Heads of Italian Mental Health Departments (MHD) were contacted. In the case of active services, the following data were obtained: date the experience began, organization, users, and reference regulations. The Questionnaire was completed with items concerning future intentions to begin an FFCA service, and knowledge of similar experiences world-wide. Data were compared with those from previous national surveys. Results. Of the 211 MHD contacted, 194 departments participated; among these, FFCA services were active in 34. From a comparison with previous surveys, a positive trend for the growth and diffusion of FFCA was found nation-wide over the last fifteen years. Conclusions. The new direction that Italian psychiatry has taken towards community-based services, also in regard to what emerges from this study, includes FFCA as a new resource for residential care in the psychiatric field.
2010
19
4
348
351
http://www.eps-journal.com
Adult Foster Care; deinstitutionalization; mental health; history of psychiatry; Adult Foster Family Care; Inserimento Eterofamiliare Supportato di Adulti; IESA; deistituzionalizzazione; psichiatria; salute mentale; storia della psichiatria
Aluffi G; Zuffranieri M; Amistà E; Furlan PM; Ostacoli L; Picci RL
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2318/84912
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