“Real‐world” first‐episode psychosis care in Massachusetts: Lessons learned from a pilot implementation of harmonized data collection
Emily Kline, Kelsey A. Johnson, Alejandro Szmulewicz, Beshaun J. Davis, A. Simone Sanders, Michelle Friedman‐Yakoobian, Döst Öngür, Michael Stepansky, Alyssa N. Williamson, Margaret Guyer, Matcheri S. Keshavan
Abstract
AIM: Increasing evidence points to the value of coordinated specialty care (CSC) for early intervention in psychotic disorders. This report characterizes clinical and socio-demographic features of patients at CSC programs in Massachusetts (MA), assessed by a standardized battery incorporated into "real-world" clinical care. METHODS: The MA psychosis network for early treatment developed a pilot battery to coordinate assessments across six CSC clinics. Programs reported baseline, 6-month, and 12-month data from a sample of 287 patients with intake dates ranging from April 2015 to December 2020. RESULTS: Patients showed improvements in functioning, emergency service use and several symptom domains at 6 and 12 months. Missing data proved to be a limitation. CONCLUSIONS: Patients improved on several meaningful domains within the first year of CSC treatment. Future implementation efforts in cross-program data collection should consider strategies to circumvent limitations related to heterogeneity between clinics, patient discharge and clinics' capacity for data collection.