The Canadian National Outcomes Measurement Study in Schizophrenia: overview of the patient sample and methodology.
OBJECTIVE
The Canadian National Outcomes Measurement Study in Schizophrenia (CNOMSS) is a prospective survey of routine clinical practice.


METHODS
Patients with schizophrenia or a related disorder were consecutively enrolled from all regions of Canada. Both academic and community psychiatric clinics were included and patients were followed up for 2 years. Clinical and functional status, quality of life, medication and economic costs were assessed at enrollment and monitored throughout the follow-up period.


RESULTS
Patients attending an academic clinic tended to be younger and more severely ill than those from community clinics. Both types of sites prescribed atypical neuroleptics to more than three-quarters of the patients. The majority of those enrolled were unemployed and living in poverty. Poor clinical status was associated with poverty.


CONCLUSIONS
The CNOMSS provides demographic, clinical and treatment-related information about a large Canada-wide sample of psychiatric patients. The following three articles in this issue of Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica explore issues related to medication, quality of life and resource utilization.
Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. geoffsm@interchange.ubc.ca
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Smith
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Malla
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Williams
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Kopala
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Love
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Balshaw
D000046:Academic Medical Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002170:Canada; D003155:Community Mental Health Centers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D003625:Data Collection / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D011203:Poverty; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011619:Psychotropic Drugs / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D018401:Sample Size; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000191:economics; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
D011619:Psychotropic Drugs