Discovering the impact of psychotherapeutic hospital treatment for adults with serious mental illness

The authors summarize findings from a multiyear research project designed primarily to investigate outcomes of intensive, psychotherapeutic hospital treatment lasting several weeks. Patients are assessed with well-established measures at admission, and their progress is reassessed biweekly up to discharge. A follow-up component was added recently to track outcomes for 1 year after discharge. All inpatient assessments are integrated with clinical care by providing individual results for each time point to the patient and the treatment team. In addition to reporting findings from inpatient treatment, the authors summarize what has been learned about the measures and methodology as well as what the assessments have revealed about psychopathology in these patients. More recently, the outcomes project has included a neuroscience initiative with findings from neuroimaging, genetics, and the microbiome; initial findings are also summarized. The authors conclude with a discussion of their understanding of the basis of the effectiveness of this increasingly rare form of inpatient treatment.