An international survey of the relatives and friends of electroconvulsive therapy recipients

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to address the paucity of studies of the relatives and friends of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) patients. Methods: A total of 1144 people responded to an online survey. Results: The respondents included 286 relatives and friends of ECT recipients, from 22 countries. 45% reported improvement in the problem for which ECT was prescribed, and 42% said it made the problem worse. 61% thought ECT had made ‘overall quality of life’ worse and 32% reported improvement. On three measures of memory, between 51% and 73% reported memory loss in their relative or friend (mostly lasting at least 3 years), and 8%–11% reported memory improvement. Twenty one of 25 other adverse effects from ECT were reported by 50% or more of the relatives/friends, including: Difficulty concentrating (79%), Fatigue (73%), Emotional blunting (73%), Loss of independence (72%) and Relationship problems (70%). 34% believed ECT had caused brain damage. When asked, ‘Would you want to have ECT yourself, if a psychiatrist thought you needed it?’ 72% said no. Two open questions, about impact on the patient and on the relative/friend, both elicited about three times as many negative impacts as positive ones. Conclusions: The responses of the relatives/friends are broadly similar to ECT recipients' responses to the same survey, reported elsewhere, which tends to support the accuracy of the ECT recipients' responses. ECT recipients and their families need a more detailed and accurate picture of possible benefits and harms if they are to give fully informed consent.