[Study on the perception of influencing factors in the course of alcoholism--a comparison among alcoholics, families, and health care professionals].
(1) We prepared a questionnaire modified from that of Edwards, G. et al, to investigate the factors influencing drinking behaviors. Responses of the questionnaire were filled out by the alcoholics, their families, and health care professionals in four psychiatric hospitals having intensive alcoholic rehabilitation programmes. Clinical course of them were traced back for at least two years. (2) We examined the relationship between the course of alcoholism and the differences in perceptions among alcoholics, their families, and health care professionals. (3) We obtained sufficient responses from 76 alcoholics. Those were divided into two groups; one is a group of alcoholics with a history of continuous abstinence of over one year (50 cases), and the other is the group of less than one year of recent abstinence period (26 cases). (4) As the overall results from the participants, items on "self-help group" were favorably responded for the improvement of drinking behavior. Families tend to perceive more sensitively into the internal psychological changes of the alcoholics than the health care professionals, whereas the health care professionals tend to make general and common responses regardless of any alcoholics. We, health care professionals should be aware of such a limit to promote more efficient collaborative works with alcoholics and their families. (5) We compared these two groups ("over one year group" vs. "less than one year group") with regard to their demographic and family backgrounds, clinical features, treatment, self-help group attendance, employment, etc. (6) A significant accordance of responses among three groups (alcoholics, family, health care professionals) was found in the "over one year group" than in the "less than one year group". Such a high level of accordance is considered to reflect a favorable family adaptation along with the recovery from alcoholism, deep understanding on the part of health care professionals, progress in the treatment and in the relationship in a self-help group. (7) As regards the "less than one year" group, it includes more single individuals and less frequent attendances to self-help groups. For this group of alcoholics, group therapy in a smaller group, individualistically oriented approaches for their needs including various supportive resources in the society should be addressed.
Kameyama
Yuka
Y
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of medicine, Kagawa University, 1750-1 Ikenobe, Mikicho, Kagawa 761-0793, Japan.
Suwaki
Hiroshi
H
Horii
Shigeo
S
Fujimoto
Yasuyuki
Y
Hoshigoe
Katsuhiko
K
Geshi
Takamaro
T
Komoto
Yasunobu
Y
D000368:Aged; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000523:psychology*; D000436:Alcoholics Anonymous; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000523:psychology* / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000523:psychology*; D006778:Hospitals, Psychiatric; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010465:Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires