title: The treatment of personality disorder in Jamaica with psychohistoriographic brief psychotherapy.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the clinical outcome of patients with personality disorder, receiving treatment with psychohistoriographic brief psychotherapy (PBP).
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients seen in the author's private practice from 1974-2010 with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, text revision (DSM-IV-TR) personality disorder diagnosis were treated with PBP. Demographic, clinical responses and one-year clinical outcome measures were disaggregated and analysed, using SPSS, version 17.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One hundred patients completed treatment with PBP, male:female 34:64; mean age of 35.86 ± 10.28 (range 16 - 66) years. Forty-five per cent were married, 73% were of predominantly African racial origin, with 59% from socio-economic class (SEC) I and 39% from SEC II and III. The presenting complaints were interpersonal conflict (35%), anxiety (21%) and depressed mood (20%). Major depression (30%), substance abuse disorder (18%) and generalized anxiety disorder (13%) were the most common Axis I diagnoses. Histrionic personality disorder (39%) and avoidant personality disorder (35%) were the main Axis II diagnoses. Psychohistoriography was completed with all patients, and charted by 96%. Transference variants were experienced by all patients and worked through with 87%. The quadranting process was completed by 42% with goal setting instituted by 96% and actualization scoring fully completed by 34%. A continuous exercise programme was instituted by all patients, and was maintained by 56% at one-year follow-up. Ninety-four per cent reported fair (10%), good (68%) to very good/excellent (16%) improvement on completion of PBP, with 72% assessed as maintaining fair to good clinical improvement by the therapist at one-year follow-up.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with personality disorders showed clinical improvement one year after being treated with psychohistoriographic brief psychotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Caribbean Institute of Mental Health and Substance Abuse (CARIMENSA), Faculty of Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica. frederick.hickling@uwimona.edu.jm; fred@fredhickling.com.
authors.forename: F W
authors.initials: FW
authors.lastname: Hickling
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007563:Jamaica; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D016896:Treatment Outcome