The use of seclusion in the Netherlands compared to countries in and outside Europe.

The use of seclusion in psychiatric practice is a contentious issue in the Netherlands as well as other countries in and outside Europe. The aim of this study is to describe Dutch seclusion data and compare these with data on other countries, derived from the literature. An extensive search revealed only 11 articles containing seclusion rates of regions or whole countries either in Europe, Australia or the United States. Dutch seclusion rates were calculated from a governmental database and from a database covering twelve General Psychiatric Hospitals in the Netherlands. According to the hospitals database, on average one in four hospitalized patients experienced a seclusion episode. The mean duration according to the governmental database is a staggering 16 days. Both numbers seem much higher than comparable numbers in other countries. However, different definitions, inconsistent methods of registration, different methods of data collection and an inconsistent expression of the seclusion use in rates limit comparisons of the rates found in the reviewed studies with the data gathered in the current study. Suggestions are made to improve data collection, to enable better comparisons.

Photo stories, Ricoeur, and experiences from practice: a hermeneutic dialogue.

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate how a particular narrative approach in nursing, namely the photo instrument can be connected with Ricoeur's hermeneutic philosophy. Ricoeur's concept of mimesis, when supplemented with the concept of performance, is shown relevant for understanding how patients construct and reformulate meaning in illness experiences. A single-case study is presented for a tentative exploration of how the key concepts of mimesis and performance can broaden our understanding of practice. More specifically it concerned the use of photographs in a group with psychiatric patients.

Perceived sleep quality of psychiatric patients.

This paper aims at acquiring knowledge about the quality of sleep of adult and elderly psychiatric patients who receive clinical or outpatient nursing care, and identifying key factors in perceiving a sleep problem. To do so, a sample of 1699 psychiatric patients were asked whether they perceived a sleep problem and were invited to fill in the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and additional questions. Five hundred and sixty (33%) questionnaires were returned. As a result, we find that 36% of the patients perceived a sleep problem, while the PSQI assessed 66% of the sample as being 'bad sleepers'. Forty-nine per cent of the respondents used sleep medication one or more times a week. Five items of the PSQI were shown to be predictors of a perceived sleep problem. Four of these are insomnia symptoms, while the fifth is the use of sleep medication. Moreover, the patients who used sleep medication most scored significantly worse on all PSQI components than patients who used sleep medication less than once a week. In conclusion, many psychiatric patients perceive a sleep problem and all nurses could be confronted not only with the night-time consequences of this, but also with daytime consequences. Therefore, sleep problems must not be viewed as an isolated problem but must be seen in relation with social functioning.

Seclusion: the inside story.

The objective of this study was to gain a better understanding of the seclusion room experiences of chronic psychiatric patients, the way in which they cope with their seclusion room experience, and the effect of seclusion on subsequent relations with care providers. A qualitative research design was used, in line with the procedure of Grounded Theory. Semi-structured interviews were held with seven chronic psychiatric outpatients whose seclusion took place at a certain remove in time. The transcriptions were analyzed with the aid of Winmax. The following results were found. Most seclusion experiences by far are negative. However, patients whose experience took place a considerable time ago also mention positive experiences. It is hard to come to terms with the seclusion experience; this is a matter of learning to live with it (adaptation) rather than assimilating it (adjustment, or active coping and controlling). Factors conducive to the coping process are: understanding the reason why it took place, time, distraction, possibilities to discuss it with others, and quick recovery of control. Factors prohibitive to the coping process are: the danger of recurrence, iniquitous treatment by care providers during seclusion, confrontation with others being secluded, and lack of opportunity to talk about it. Seclusion does not affect subsequent relation with care providers, with two exceptions. When patients feel they have been treated iniquitously during seclusion, or when seclusion continues to be a daily threat, this has a negative effect on relations with care providers. The central themes of this study are autonomy, trust, and loneliness.