The communication group: Bringing group psychotherapy back to acute in-patient psychiatry

Abstract

People who are admitted to acute psychiatric wards need psychological as well as pharmacological treatments, but psychological care is not always available in the acute setting. Group psychotherapy can prove a practical and cost-effective answer to this unmet need in service provision. We describe a psychotherapeutic group that our team has implemented on our busy, inner-city, male-only acute ward, which has been running successfully for over 2 years and has since become an integral part of the acute care we provide to our in-patients. Group therapy can enhance individuals' adherence totreatment plans, reduce reliance on pharmacological approaches, pre-empt untoward serious incidents and potentially reduce patients' duration of stay. In addition to addressing the psychological needs of acutely unwell people, group therapy is beneficial to the clinical team by promoting a better work and therapeutic environment on the ward.