title: Staff and consumer perspectives on defining treatment success and failure in assertive community treatment.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Although assertive community treatment (ACT) has been consistently recognized as effective, there has been little research as to what constitutes success in ACT. The purpose of this study was to understand how ACT consumers and staff define treatment success and failure and to examine whether definitions varied between staff and consumers.
  
  
  METHODS
  Investigators conducted semistructured interviews with 25 staff and 23 consumers from four ACT teams.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Across perspectives, success and failure were most clearly related to consumer factors. Other themes included having basic needs met, being socially involved, and taking medications. Reduced hospitalizations were mentioned infrequently. Consumers were more likely than staff to identify the level or type of treatment as defining success and failure, whereas staff were more likely than consumers to discuss substance abuse when defining failure and improved symptoms when defining success.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Success in ACT should be viewed more broadly than reduced hospitalizations and include domains such as social involvement.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA. lgc@iupui.edu
authors.forename: Laura G
authors.initials: LG
authors.lastname: Stull
authors.forename: John H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: McGrew
authors.forename: Michelle P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Salyers
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D003258:Consumer Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007196:Indiana; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care
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