Family education and training has been shown to have a positive impact on both the individual with psychosis and their caregivers when it is embedded within a treatment program. Providing support to caregivers to help make them be more active and effective participants in the patient's recovery can be a cost-effective approach that contributes to better patient outcomes. This study will enroll patients recently diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or schizophreniform disorder that are prescribed either paliperidone palmitate or oral antipsychotic treatment, and their designated caregivers. Outcomes in patients with caregivers receiving a study-provided psycho-education and skills training program will be compared to patients with caregivers receiving usual caregiver support (caregiver support that is customarily provided by the study site, if any). OBJECTIVE AND HYPOTHESES Primary Objective: To evaluate the overall effect of caregivers receiving a study-provided caregiver psycho-education and skills training program on the number of treatment failures (psychiatric hospitalization, psychiatric ER visit, crisis center visit, mobile crisis unit intervention, arrest/incarceration, and suicide or suicide attempt) in patients under their care during a 12 month period. Primary Hypothesis: When caregivers receive a study-provided psycho-education and skills training, patients with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and schizophreniform disorder under their care will have fewer treatment failures compared with patients whose caregivers receive usual caregiver support. Secondary Hypotheses: Over a 12 month period study-provided caregiver psycho-education and skills training will be superior to usual caregiver support in reducing caregiver burden and distress. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or schizophreniform disorder receiving oral antipsychotic treatment and who have caregivers receiving a study-provided caregiver psycho-education and skills training program will have fewer treatment failures compared with patients receiving oral antipsychotic treatment that have caregivers receiving usual caregiver support. Patients diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or schizophreniform disorder receiving paliperidone palmitate treatment and who have caregivers receiving study-provided caregiver psycho-education and skills training program will have fewer treatment failures compared with patients receiving paliperidone palmitate that have caregivers receiving usual caregiver support.
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