Papers by Alexandra Palli
De Gruyter eBooks, Aug 7, 2023
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Goal: The present research paper aims at assessing the effectivity of a psychoeducational interve... more Goal: The present research paper aims at assessing the effectivity of a psychoeducational intervention in relative’s groups of patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. It examines the possible influence of the intervention on family members as well as on the course of the illness. Methodology: Of a total of 131 relatives, 83 consisted the experimental group and 48 the control group. The relatives of the experimental group were divided in 5 groups and attended 18 psychoeducational sessions. Their patients of the experimental group as well as the patients and the relatives of the control group attended no specific intervention and continued their routine care. The psychoeducational intervention included education about the illness, communication skills training and training in problem-solving. It combined educational and psychotherapeutic techniques. The psychometric tools administered were: The Family Burden Scale, The Family Rituals Scale, The General Health Question...
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Psychiatrike = Psychiatriki, 2015
The present research paper aims at assessing the effectiveness of a psychoeducational interventio... more The present research paper aims at assessing the effectiveness of a psychoeducational intervention in relatives' groups of patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. It examines the possible influence of the intervention on family members as well as on the course of the patient illness. Of a total of 131 relatives, 83 consisted the experimental group and 48 the control group. The relatives of the experimental group were divided into 5 groups and attended 18 psychoeducational sessions. Their patients as well s the patients and the relatives of the control group attended no specific intervention and continued their routine care. The psychoeducational intervention included education about the illness, communication skills training and training in problem-solving. It combined educational and psychotherapeutic techniques. The psychometric tools administered were: The Family Burden Scale, The Family Rituals Scale, The General Health Questionnaire GHQ-28, the Center for E...
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European Journal of Psychology Open, 2021
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Hospice and Palliative Medicine International Journal, 2017
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It is well known that psychoeducation is a therapeutic approach whose origins can be found in the... more It is well known that psychoeducation is a therapeutic approach whose origins can be found in the findings of the Expressed Emotion Theory (EE). That theory refers to caregivers’ attitudes towards a person with a mental disorder, considering negative factors such as criticism, hostility and emotional overinvolvement on the one hand and positive factors such as warmth and positive attitudes on the other as important for patient recovery. If even one single person in a family scores high in the negative factors, the whole family is characterized as a "high EE family" [1]. Findings indicate that communication patterns in those families are usually characterized by more intense and negative verbal exchanges, oppositional or conflictual in nature. Significant is also that interaction patterns in high EE dyads of patient and caregiver are more likely to be rigid. Expressed Emotion is therefore a significant characteristic of the family milieu that has been found to predict sympt...
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Community Mental Health Journal
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Community Mental Health Journal
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International Journal of Social Psychiatry
Background: Only a handful of studies have explored the effect of the financial crisis on public ... more Background: Only a handful of studies have explored the effect of the financial crisis on public attitudes to mental illness. Aims: This study examines changes in lay attitudes to depression and psychiatric medication between 2009 and 2014 in Attica region. Furthermore, it explored a potential interaction with employment status. Methods: Data were drawn from two surveys conducted in 2009 and 2014 using the same sampling procedure, interview mode, and survey instrument. Specifically, a random and representative sample of 586 people was recruited in 2009 and of 604 in 2014. Attitudes to depression were measured by the Personal Stigma subscale of the Depression Stigma Scale and attitudes to psychiatric medication by a self-constructed scale with good psychometric properties. Data collection occurred via telephone. Results: There has been no overall change in lay attitudes to depression. Nonetheless, a positive change was recorded with regard to the belief that depression is a sign of p...
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European Psychiatry, Nov 30, 2004
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International Journal of Mental Health, 2015
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International Journal of Mental Health, 2015
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In this report we present a case example of a psychoeducational intervention in a single family i... more In this report we present a case example of a psychoeducational intervention in a single family in which both the mother and the son were suffering from schizoaffective or bipolar Type I disorders. Several characteristics of family functioning were initially assessed as also parental opinions about mentally ill persons and euthanasia. Outcome data is reported showing improvement on the levels of expressed emotion, on family functioning and communication and on relative’s burden of care. Psychoeducation played a core role as an auxiliary to the pharmacological treatment of both the identified patient and his mother.
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Opinion: Thoughts about the evolution of Psychoeducation and Behavioural Family Therapy.
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Η παρούσα μελέτη στοχεύει στην αξιολόγηση μιας ψυχοεκπαιδευτικής παρέμβασης σε ομά-δες συγγενών τ... more Η παρούσα μελέτη στοχεύει στην αξιολόγηση μιας ψυχοεκπαιδευτικής παρέμβασης σε ομά-δες συγγενών των οποίων οι ασθενείς πάσχουν από σχιζοφρένεια ή σχιζοσυναισθηματική διαταραχή. Διερευνάται αφενός η επίδρασή της στην οικογένεια και αφετέρου η επίδρασή της στην πορεία της ίδιας της νόσου του ασθενούς. Στη μελέτη συμμετείχαν 131 συγγε-νείς. Οι 83 αποτέλεσαν την ομάδα παρέμβασης και οι 48 την ομάδα ελέγχου. Η ψυχοεκπαιδευτική παρέμβαση περιελάμβανε εκπαίδευση των συγγενών γύρω από τη νόσο, εκπαίδευση σε δεξιότητες επικοινωνίας, εκπαίδευση σε τεχνικές επίλυσης προβλήματος, συνδυάζοντας εκπαιδευτικές και ψυ-χοθεραπευτικές τεχνικές. Κάθε συγγενής της ομάδας παρέμβασης συμμετείχε σε μία από τις πέντε ομάδες συγγενών που πραγματοποιήθηκαν. Η καθεμία ομάδα ολοκληρώθηκε σε 18 συνεδρίες. Οι ασθενείς τους, καθώς και οι συγγενείς και οι ασθενείς της ομάδας ελέγχου δεν έλαβαν καμία ψυ-χοεκπαιδευτική παρέμβαση και συνέχισαν κατά το ερευνητικό διάστημα τη θεραπεία ρουτίνας. Πραγματοποιήθηκαν τρεις μετρήσεις, σε διάστημα ενός έτους. Τα εργαλεία που χρησιμοποιήθηκαν ήταν μεταξύ άλλων η Κλίμακα Οικογενειακής Επιβάρυνσης, η Κλίμακα Οικογενειακών Συνηθειών, το Ερωτηματολόγιο Γενικής υγείας (GHQ-28), η Κλίμακα για την κατάθλιψη (CES-D), το Ερωτηματολόγιο Καταγραφής των Στάσεων (ΟΜΙ), δύο κλίμακες αξιολόγησης των γνώσεων γύρω από την ασθένεια και ερωτηματολόγια προσδοκιών και ανατροφοδότησης από την ομάδα. Επίσης συλλέχθηκαν τα κοι-νωνικοδημογραφικά χαρακτηριστικά των ασθενών και συγγενών και στοιχεία γύρω από την πορεία της ασθένειας. Διερευνήθηκε ο αριθμός των νοσηλειών των ασθενών (n=91) κατά τη διάρκεια του ερευνητικού χρόνου και διαπιστώθηκε ότι υπάρχει αλληλεπίδραση μεταξύ ομάδας και μέτρησης. Βρέθηκε ότι ενώ οι νοσηλείες που είχαν οι ασθενείς των δύο ερευνητικών ομάδων το έτος πριν τη μελέτη δεν διέφεραν σημαντικά (x 2 =0,54, p=0,46), διέφεραν όμως έναν χρόνο μετά την παρέμβαση, όπου οι ασθενείς της ομάδας παρέμβασης είχαν στατιστικά σημαντικά λιγότερες νοσηλείες έναντι
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The present study endeavors to assess the effectiveness of relatives-group psychoeducation in imp... more The present study endeavors to assess the effectiveness of relatives-group psychoeducation in improving family cohesion, alleviating caregivers’ burdens, and reducing depressive symptomatology in relatives of those suffering from schizophrenia spectrum disorders.
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Community Mental Health Journal
Converging evidence support the establishment of integrative approaches combining pharmacotherapy... more Converging evidence support the establishment of integrative approaches combining pharmacotherapy and psychosocial interventions for the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. Nonetheless, most studies have been limited with regard to treatment duration and their external validty has been questioned. The present study aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of the routine use of a continued integrative treatment approach in promoting clinical and social recovery from schizophrenia over 4 years. At a community mental health centre in Athens, 60 consecutive cases with a DSM-IV diagnosis of schizophrenic spectrum disorders were included into the study. Indepedent raters assessed the patients’ level of functioning, cognitive impairment, disability, distress and caregivers’ stress at baseline and annually for 4 years. The results of the study showed a stable linear pattern of improvement in all outcome measures with moderate to small effect sizes; while competitive employment and independent living emerged as the areas which benefited the least from the treatment program. Overall, the study supports the application of evidence-based integrative strategies to routine services, as long as they are provided in a timely and continued manner.
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Papers by Alexandra Palli
Covid19 and Mental Health: The psychological pandemic of the virus and coping strategies
Σας περιμένουμε!
Διάρκεια: 4 ημέρες : 10-11/10 και 17-18/10 (60 ώρες στις οποίες συμπεριλαμβάνονται 30 ώρες σύγχρονης τηλεκπαίδευσης)
Πληροφορίες και εγγραφές: https://hygieia.gr/.../programma-sympliromatikis-ek.../
During a pandemic, which requires us to adhere to social distancing and voluntary home restraint, feelings of worry and insecurity are to be expected. Sudden changes in our daily routines and especially the deprivation of freedom coupled with the fear of death, set the scene for an unstable environment which in turn might lead to intense anxiety and emotional destabilization. Notably, people with serious mental disorders, along with their families, might face increased challenges in applying the precautionary governmental measures such as home confinement, which may result in communication difficulties. Studies have shown that the effects of stress are cumulative and especially so in vulnerable patients with mental illness. It is essential for these patients to experience external stress in a protective familial setting.
Mental health professionals as well as family members which support a person suffering from a psychotic disorder, acknowledge that communication is key and plays an integral role in the creation of a supportive environment.
Σε μια κατάσταση πανδημίας, η οποία απαιτεί διατήρηση κοινωνικής απόστασης και εθελούσιο κατ’ οίκον περιορισμό, όλοι αναμένεται να νιώσουν ανήσυχοι και ανασφαλείς. Oι απότομες αλλαγές στην καθημερινότητα και κυρίως η στέρηση της ελευθερίας και ο φόβος για τη ζωή, δημιουργούν ένα ασταθές περιβάλλον που μπορεί να προκαλέσει έντονο άγχος και ψυχική αποσταθεροποίηση. Άτομα με σοβαρές ψυχικές ασθένειες καθώς και οι οικογένειές τους αντιμετωπίζουν σε αυτές τις συνθήκες δυσκολία εφαρμογής του εθελοντικού εγκλεισμού και κατά συνέπεια ιδιαίτερες δυσκολίες στην επικοινωνία τους. Επειδή το στρες δρα αθροιστικά, ειδικά οι ευάλωτοι σε αυτό ασθενείς με ψυχωσικές διαταραχές έχουν ανάγκη να βιώνουν το άγχος από το εξωτερικό περιβάλλον μέσα σε μια προστατευτική οικογενειακή ατμόσφαιρα.
Οι επαγγελματίες στο χώρο της ψυχικής υγείας καθώς και τα μέλη της οικογένειας με άτομο που πάσχει από κάποια ψυχωσική διαταραχή, γνωρίζουν ότι η επικοινωνία αποτελεί την κορωνίδα του υποστηρικτικού περιβάλλοντος. Σύμφωνα με τις αρχές της Ψυχοεκπαίδευσης, ο συγκεκριμένος Οδηγός φιλοδοξεί να διευκολύνει τις οικογένειες στην καλύτερη επικοινωνία, στην αύξηση της ανθεκτικότητας και της προσαρμοστικότητάς τους σε ψυχοπιεστικές καταστάσεις που αλλάζουν τη ζωή.