Psychiatric News (5/15) reports a study found that “individuals with first-episode psychosis who experience a shorter period between first use of an antipsychotic and enrollment in a coordinated specialty care (CSC) program show improved functioning and quality of life at six months.” Researchers “examined outcomes for 147 first-episode psychosis patients enrolled from 2014 to 2019 in Specialized Treatment in Early Psychosis (STEP), a CSC in New Haven, Connecticut, that ran a dedicated four-year early detection campaign focused on raising public awareness of psychosis, training health professionals to identify symptoms, and streamlining the CSC referral process.” They observed the average total duration of untreated psychosis (DUP) “for patients enrolled in STEP was 5.9 months shorter than those in the CSC with standard detection protocols. This included a 1.3-month reduction in DUP-Demand and a 4.6-month reduction in DUP-Supply.” Notably, the “time reduction translated into improvements in functional outcomes.” The study was published in Schizophrenia Bulletin.
Related Links:
— “Shorter Time Between Antipsychotic Initiation and CSC Referral Improves Outcomes,” Psychiatric News , May 15, 2025