Ακούσια νοσηλεία, οικογένεια και κλινική κοινωνική εργασία.

Compulsory admission, family and clinical social work.

Over time, the family has proved to be the primary support system and the basic source of care for the mentally ill. Various theories have been propounded as to the role of the family in the etiology and development of serious mental disorders. The family atmosphere, the caregivers’ burden and negatively expressed emotions, have all been found to have a negative impact on the progression of the disease and on relapses, and on the psychosocial functioning and overall improvement of the patient. In Greece, a high rate of involuntary hospitalizations (60%) is recorded, the majority of which have been initiated at the request of a member of the patient’s family. Clinical social workers are called upon to manage the problems arising from the involuntary hospitalization process. As management approaches and therapeutic interventions are constantly changing, clinical social work, as a dynamically evolving science, adapts to new evidence by applying modern models and practices. Clinical social workers, applying models of crisis intervention and recovery, are able to contribute constructively in supporting the patients and their families, accompanying all family members in the procedures of “continue – adapt to living with the disease”. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]