Abstract
Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) is a well-defined service delivery model for the care and treatment of the most severely mentally ill in the community. We have opted for a Dutch version named ‘Function’ ACT or FACT. In a FACT team, ACT is one of the functions that the team can perform. For more stable long-term patients FACT provides coordinated multidisciplinary treatment and care by individual case management. Unstable patients at risk of relapse are followed with assertive outreach care by the same team, working with a shared caseload for this subgroup. This article describes the service model and everyday practice in FACT.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
The F in the Dutch acronym FACT originally stood for ‘function’. The idea behind the term is that the FACT team functions in different ways: for the 20% group the FACT team functions in exactly the same way as an ACT team, but it also has many other functions. However, in English we would like to have the F also stand for ‘Flexible’. We hope that not too much confusion will be caused by the use of the same acronym, FACT, in America to refer to forensic ACT teams.
References
Adair, C. E. et al. (2005). Continuity of care and health outcomes among persons with severe mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 56, 1061–1069
Bak, M. et al. (2007). An observational, ‘real life’ trial of the introduction of Assertive Community Treatment in a geographically defined area using clinical rather than service use outcome criteria. Social Psychiatry Psychiatric Epidemiology, 42, 125–130
Bond, G.R., et al. (2005). Toekomstige ontwikkelingen van ACT. In C. L. Mulder, & H. Kroon (Eds.), Assertive community treatment (pp. 205–241). Nijmegen: Uitgeverij Cure and Care Publishers
Bond, G. R., Drake, R. E., Mueser, K. T., & Latimer, E. (2001). Assertive community treatment for people with severe mental illness, critical ingredients and impact on patients. Disease Management and Health Outcomes, 9, 142–157
Bond, G. R., & Salyers, M. P. (2004). Prediction of outcome from the Dartmouth Assertive Community Treatment Scale. CNS Spectrum, 9, 937–942
Burns, T., Fioritti, A., Holloway, F., Malm, U., & Rössler, W. (2001). Case management and assertive community treatment in Europe. Psychiatric Services, 52, 631–636
Henselmans, H., Kok, S., Nammensma, V., & van Berkel, H. (1991). Bemoeizorg. Maandblad Geestelijke Volksgezondheid, 46, 1193–1205
Kluiter, H. (1997). Inpatient treatment and care arrangements to replace or avoid it, searching for an evidence based balance. Current Opinion in Psychiatry, 10, 160–167
Marshall, M. & Lockwood, A. (2002). Assertive Community Treatment for people with severe mental disorders. The Cochrane Library, Issue 4
McGrew J. H., Pescosolido, B., & Wright E. (2003). Case managers’ perspectives on critical ingredients of assertive community treatment and on its implementation. Psychiatric Services, 54, 370–376
Monahan, J. et al. (2005). Use of leverage to improve adherence to psychiatric treatment in the community. Psychiatric Services, 56, 37–44
Priebe, S. et al. (2005). Reinstitutionalisation in mental health care: Comparison on service provision from six European countries. British Medical Journal, 330, 123–126
Priebe S., Huxley P., Knight S., & Evans S. (1999). Application and results of the Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life (MANSA). International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 45, 7–12
Ravelli, D. P. (2005). Deinstitutionalisation of mental health care in the Netherlands from 1993–2004. Utrecht
Stein, L. I. (1990). A historical review of the Madison model of Community Care Assertive Community Treatment. Hospital and Community Psychiatry, 41, 649–651
Stein, L. I., & Santos, A. B. (1998). Assertive community. Treatment of persons with severe mental illness. New York
Teague, G. B., Bond, G. R., & Drake, R. E. (1998). Program Fidelity in assertive community treatment: Development and use of a measure. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 68, 216–232
Test L. I., & Stein M. A. (Eds.) (1978). Alternatives to mental hospital treatment. USA: Plenum Press
van Veldhuizen, J. R. (1998). Zorgverlamming. Maandblad Geestelijke volksgezondheid, 53, 1175–1186
van Veldhuizen, J. R., Wiersma, D., & Ram, L. M. (1988). Opname Vervangende Dag Behandeling in ontwikkeling; Een bericht uit het Substitutieproject Drenthe. Maandblad Geestelijke Volksgezondheid, 43, 3–18
van Weeghel, J., et al. (2005). The components of good community care for people with severe mental illnesses: Views of stakeholders in five European countries. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 28, 274–281
Wing, J. K., et al. (1998). Health of the Nation Outcome Scale (HoNOS), research and development. British Journal of Psychiatry, 172, 11–18
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
J. Remmers van Veldhuizen, psychiatrist, is director of care innovation at the Noord-Holland Noord GGZ (Mental Health Care Service).
About this article
Cite this article
van Veldhuizen, J.R. FACT: A Dutch Version of ACT. Community Ment Health J 43, 421–433 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-007-9089-4
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-007-9089-4