Inpatient Psychiatry Services in Turkey

What is Inpatient Psychiatry Service in Turkey?

Inpatient Psychiatry clinic is the name given to specialized clinics where psychiatric disorders are treated. In psychiatry clinics, patients are treated using evidence-based methods, and this treatment continues after hospitalization in a way that allows patients to control the impact of their symptoms on their lives and increase their functionality. In psychiatry clinics, drug treatment is supported by psychotherapy and art therapy. Psychiatric clinics are the general name given to specialized clinics that provide short-term or long-term treatment clinics by experts in the field.

What Diseases Does Inpatient Psychiatry Clinic Deal With?

Inpatient Psychiatry clinics are clinics where psychiatric disorders are treated. Psychiatry clinics deal with mood disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia spectrum disorders such as schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, delusional disorder, and schizoaffective disorder. In addition, psychiatry clinics also deal with post-traumatic stress disorder, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorder and similar disorders. In psychiatry clinics, treatment of disorders such as alcohol and substance use disorder, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder is also applied. The treatment applied in psychiatry clinics is arranged in accordance with the disease and needs of each patient. In psychiatry clinics, treatment is personal and each patient’s unique living environment and relationships are taken into account when planning treatment.

Why is Inpatient Treatment Recommended for Patients?

Each patient’s needs are taken into account in order to recommend inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic. In order to offer a person inpatient treatment in a psychiatric clinic, certain conditions must be met. People of all age groups can apply for inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic. Inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic can be voluntary or involuntary. Voluntary inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic takes place when the patient accepts the hospitalization after being recommended to the patient by the physician.

In voluntary inpatient treatments in the psychiatry clinic, the patient may refuse treatment independently of the physician’s recommendation and be discharged. In some cases, involuntary inpatient treatment may be performed in psychiatric clinics. Involuntary inpatient treatments in psychiatry clinics may be recommended in cases where the patient may harm himself or someone else, or when the person’s ability to evaluate reality is severely impaired (auditory or visual hallucinations, delusions, etc.).

How Are Patients Treated in the Psychiatry Clinic in Turkey?

In the psychiatry clinic, treatment is initiated by considering the needs of the patients and their unique situations. In psychiatry clinics, after the patients are evaluated by specialist physicians and psychologists, the treatment proceeds in a personalized way. In the psychiatry clinic, patients can receive treatments such as ECT (Electroconvulsive Therapy), TMS (Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) and KIT (Ketamine Infusion Therapy) in addition to drug therapy, depending on their condition. In the psychiatry clinic, patients are supported and observed by the treatment team 24 hours a day.

In the Inpatient Psychiatry clinic, it is aimed for the patient to get away from the stress factors and the difficulties of daily life and the treatment to proceed as smoothly as possible. In psychiatry clinics, psychotherapy is applied by psychologists who are experts in the field, in addition to drug treatment. In addition, art therapy applied during the day in the psychiatry clinic helps patients both interact socially and express themselves through art.

What are the Tests and Evaluations Performed in the Psychiatric Clinic?

In order for the treatment applied in the psychiatry clinic to progress in accordance with the needs of the patient, the measurement of the personality traits and the severity of the symptoms of each patient is necessary for the success of the treatment. MMPI, TAT, Rorschah tests can be applied in order to better understand the personality characteristics of the patient in the treatments applied in the psychiatry clinic. MOXO, CNS Vital Signs, NPT and similar tests can be used to measure and evaluate the attention and cognitive abilities of the person. Measuring the severity of the symptoms of patients hospitalized in the psychiatry clinic is very important to evaluate the success of the treatment. For this reason, Young Mania Scale, Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale, Padua Inventory, BPRS Scale, Eating Disorders Rating Scale, Beck Depression Scale, SAPS-SANS Scales, Suicide Probability Scale, CGI and similar scales are applied. Thanks to these scales, which are applied during the treatment of inpatients in the psychiatry clinic, it is possible to evaluate the stage of the treatment of the patient.

What is Done During the Day in the Psychiatry Clinic?

It is very important for inpatients in the psychiatry clinic to have a program where they can be active during the day. At the beginning of the day in the psychiatry clinic, the day starts with a good morning meeting attended by all the patients who can attend. During this meeting, patients’ feedback on the clinic and how their previous night was spent is received. After the clinic personnel and patients start the day, after the garden time when the patients can go out to the garden, a morning visit is made with the physicians and psychologists of the patients. After this visit, patients participate in psychosocial activities planned during the day until lunch.

After lunch, during the art therapy hour, patients can express their feelings and thoughts through art together with a specialist psychologist. After the art therapy, garden time and then psychosocial activity hour or group therapy, where the patients can interact, take place. Towards the end of the day, dinner is served and patients can spend time in the common area in the clinic.

What are the General Rules in Psychiatry Clinic?

There are some rules to ensure the safety of patients and treatment team in the psychiatry clinic. These rules are also necessary for the treatment to proceed as smoothly and effectively as possible. Patients admitted to the psychiatry clinic are prohibited from using the telephone, accepting visitors and going out to the garden hours for the first 2 days, as per the clinic rules. It is also against the rules for patients receiving inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic to bring with them objects such as rope, cutting tools, etc. that may harm the person or someone else.

In the following days of inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic, the use of mobile phones, computers, etc., may be allowed if the psychiatrist and psychologist of the patient deem it appropriate. The use of electronic devices such as computers and telephones should be in the patients’ room. Patients receiving inpatient treatment in the psychiatry clinic can use the smoking room to smoke during the day.

Things to Consider Before Visiting the Psychiatry Clinic in Turkey

It is recommended that patients who apply to the psychiatry clinic for inpatient treatment should postpone their work that needs to be dealt with before the inpatient treatment until the treatment is completed, as communication with people outside the hospital may be limited during the inpatient treatment period. It is recommended that patients who plan to be admitted to the psychiatry clinic bring slippers, pyjamas, books, magazines and comfortable clothes with them. It is recommended that these responsibilities be transferred to a close friend or family member before the hospitalization, or that these responsibilities are handled before the inpatient treatment, in order to avoid disruptions or to minimize the problems related to home or work before the admission to the psychiatry clinic.

Information and Opportunities for Families of Inpatients in the Psychiatric Clinic

It is very important that the families of the patients hospitalized in the psychiatry clinic are informed about the disease in order to have the right attitude towards the patient after the inpatient treatment. Psychologists and psychiatrists inform the family members who have been hospitalized in the psychiatry clinic about the early symptoms of the disease, the symptoms of the disease, the points to be considered in the approach to the patient, the importance of cooperation with the treatment team, the function and duration of the drugs, and the lifestyle changes necessary for recovery.

How is Security Provided in the Psychiatric Clinic?

In order to minimize the possibility of inpatients in the psychiatry clinic to harm themselves or those around them, psychiatry clinics have been designed with certain safety precautions in mind. Some of these safety measures are that patients do not have access to a lighter outside the smoking room in the psychiatry clinic, that sharp and piercing tools, rope and similar materials are not present in the clinic, and that the windows are resistant to breakage and do not open fully. In cases where the patients may harm their environment or themselves, the security team and the treatment team work together to ensure the patient’s safety.

The information on this page has been prepared by the Moodist Psychiatry and Neurology Hospital Medical Team.