Psychosis in Asian immigrants from the Indian sub-continent: preliminary findings from a follow-up study including a survey of general practitioners

Abstract

The paper presents preliminary findings from a follow-up study of 86 first-generation immigrants to the United Kingdom from the Indian sub-continent, and a matched indigenous English-born control group. All subjects had originally been seen at the Bethlem Royal and Maudsley Hospitals and had been diagnosed as suffering from a functional psychosis. Attempts to locate the patients 5-20 years later revealed that a significantly higher proportion of the immigrant group could not be traced to a general practitioner within the United Kingdom, or otherwise accounted for. Possible explanations for this finding are advanced; the fact itself has important implications for those concerned with the provision of care and services for mentally ill immigrants in this country.