Mental Healthcare Delivery in Rural Greece: A 10-year Account of a Mobile Mental Health Unit.

Introduction: Patients living in rural and remote areas may have limited access to mental healthcare due to lack of facilities and socioeconomic reasons, and this is the case of rural areas in Eastern Europe countries. In Greece, community mental health service delivery in rural areas has been implemented through the development of the Mobile Mental Health Units (MMHUs).

Methods: We present a 10-year account of the operation of the MMHU of the prefectures of Ioannina and Thesprotia (MMHU I-T) and report on the impact of the service on mental health delivery in the catchment area.

Long-term Benzodiazepine Treatment in Patients with Psychotic Disorders Attending a Mental Health Service in Rural Greece.

Introduction: Long-term benzodiazepine (BZD) treatment in patients with mental disorders is widespread in clinical practice, and this is also the case of patients with schizophrenia, although the evidence is weak and BZD prescription is discouraged by guidelines and medical authorities. Data on BZD prescription are usually derived from national or regional databases whereas information on the use of BZD by patients with schizophrenia and related psychoses in general population-based samples is limited.

Materials And Methods: Information for 77 patients with psychotic disorders who were regularly attending follow-up appointments with the multidisciplinary Mobile Mental Health Unit of the prefectures of Ioannina and Thesprotia, Northwest Greece, during 1-year period (2015) was obtained from our database.

First episode of psychosis in a middle-aged patient with a 14-year history of conversion disorder.

We present a case of a middle-aged male patient with a long history of conversion disorder and histrionic personality, who presented with newly onset psychotic symptoms while being engaged to treatment with a community mental health team in a primary care setting. The symptoms could not be attributed to an organic cause. After a short course of olanzapine treatment which caused adverse effects, the symptomatology responded well to low dose amisulpride.