Schizophrenia causes significant burden to patients' and caregivers' lives.
BACKGROUND
Schizophrenia is a serious public health problem and is ranked among the most disabling diseases in the world. The sub-study presented here was part of a larger project to characterize the burden of schizophrenia on healthcare systems and on individuals living with the disease in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE).


OBJECTIVE
This sub-study aimed to assess and analyze the impact of schizophrenia on many aspects of the lives of patients and caregivers.


METHODS
Psychiatrists from selected centers in seven Central and Eastern European countries were asked to complete a questionnaire in order to collect information about the disease history, characteristics, treatment protocols and resources used for each randomly selected patient. All data were statistically analyzed and compared between countries.


RESULTS
Data from 961 patients with schizophrenia (mean age 40.7 years, 45.1% female) were included in the analysis. The mean number of days spent in hospital per patient per year across all seven countries was 25.3 days. Hospitalization occurred on average once per year, with psychiatrist visits 9.4 times per year. Of the patients in the study, 61% were single, 12% divorced and 22% married or cohabiting. Almost 84% were living with relatives or a partner; only 17% lived alone and, on average, 25% of patients received support from social workers. Relatives provided care for approximately 60% of patients and 4% of them had to stop working in order to do so. Twenty-nine percent of the patients were unemployed, and 56% received a disability pension or were retired, with only 19% in full-time employment or education.


CONCLUSIONS
Schizophrenia has a significant effect on the lives of patients and caregivers and impacts their social integration.
Roche Polska Sp. z o.o., ul. Domaniewska 39 B, 02-672 Warszawa, Poland, monika.szkultecka-debek@roche.com.
Monika
M
Szkultecka-Dębek
Katarzyna
K
Miernik
Jarosław
J
Stelmachowski
Miro
M
Jakovljević
Vlado
V
Jukić
Kaire
K
Aadamsoo
Sven
S
Janno
István
I
Bitter
Judit
J
Tolna
Marek
M
Jarema
Slobodan
S
Jankovic
Jan
J
Pecenak
Livia
L
Vavrusova
Rok
R
Tavčar
Jacek
J
Walczak
Darren
D
Talbot
Joanna
J
Augustyńska
D000328:Adult; D017028:Caregivers; D017281:Cost of Illness; D017523:Croatia; D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D004957:Estonia; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D006814:Hungary; D007902:Length of Stay / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D008875:Middle Aged; D011044:Poland; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012559:Schizophrenia; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D055771:Serbia; D018154:Slovakia; D017524:Slovenia; D012947:Social Work / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires