Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Nov;51(6):839-842.
doi: 10.1007/s10488-024-01377-z. Epub 2024 Apr 30.

Critical Gaps in Assisted Outpatient Treatment Research in the United States

Elizabeth Sinclair Hancq  1 , Mark Munetz  2 , Shanti C Silver  1 , Hope A Parker  1 , Natalie Bonfine  3
Affiliations

Critical Gaps in Assisted Outpatient Treatment Research in the United States

Elizabeth Sinclair Hancq et al. Adm Policy Ment Health. 2024 Nov.

Abstract

In 2023, the White House included the implementation and improvement of assisted outpatient treatment in a list of under-researched strategies to support recovery and long-term treatment engagement for people with serious mental illness. Assisted outpatient treatment is a community-based, court-ordered, mental health treatment program for a subset of individuals with serious mental illness who have a history of difficulty adhering to treatment and staying well while living in the community. There is research supporting the use of assisted outpatient treatment for this specific population, however, the majority focuses on limited geographic regions, specific program organizations, and is outdated. Meanwhile, assisted outpatient treatment programs have increasingly been adopted by counties and states across the country. More research is needed to ensure that assisted outpatient treatment programs are being implemented in the most effective and equitable way possible. In this paper, the authors identify several key gaps in the current literature base relating to the effectiveness and implementation of assisted outpatient treatment.

Keywords: Assisted Outpatient Treatment; Serious Mental Illness.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Azar, A. M., McCance-Katz, E. F., Everett, A., & Mathews-Younes, A. (2018). 2018 Report to Congress Section 224 of the 2014 Protecting Access to Medicare Act Assisted Outpatient Treatment Grant Program. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Center for Mental Health Services.
    1. Busch, A. B., Wilder, C. M., Van Dorn, R. A., Swartz, M. S., & Swanson, J. W. (2010). Changes in guideline-recommended medication possession after implementing Kendra’s Law in New York. Psychiatric Services,61(10), 1000–1005. 10.1176/ps.2010.61.10.1000 - PMC - PubMed
    1. Esposito, R., Westhead, V., & Berko, J. (2008). Florida’s outpatient commitment law: Effective but underused. Psychiatric Services,59(3), 328–329. 10.1176/appi.ps.59.3.328 - PubMed
    1. Gilbert, A. R., Moser, L. L., Van Dorn, R. A., Swanson, J. W., Wilder, C. M., Robbins, P. C., Keator, K. J., Steadman, H. J., & Swartz, M. S. (2010). Reductions in arrest under assisted outpatient treatment in New York. Psychiatric Services,61(10), 996–999. 10.1176/ps.2010.61.10.996 - PubMed
    1. Hiday, V. A., Swartz, M. S., Swanson, J. W., Borum, R., & Wagner, H. R. (2002). Impact of outpatient commitment on victimization of people with severe mental illness. American Journal of Psychiatry,159(8), 1403–1411. 10.1176/appi.ajp.159.8.1403 - PubMed

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources