The effects of auditory hallucination symptom management programme for people with schizophrenia: a quasi-experimental design.

Aim: To examine the effectiveness of an auditory hallucinatory symptom management programme in patients with chronic schizophrenia.

Background: Thirty per cent of chronic schizophrenia patients are still disturbed by hallucinations, which influence their psychological and social well-being, even when they take medication regularly.

Method: Fifty-eight people experiencing schizophrenia with auditory hallucinations from psychiatric inpatient rehabilitation wards in northern Taiwan participated in the study, with 29 in the experimental group and 29 in the control group. The experimental group received an auditory hallucinatory symptom management programme. The auditory hallucinatory symptom management programme involved 60-minute meetings once a week, for a total of 10 meetings. The control group received routine care, which included free recreation for 40 minutes and walking for 20 minutes. The participants completed three self-report questionnaires: the Beck Depressive Inventory II, the Beck Anxiety Inventory and the Characteristics of Auditory Hallucinations Questionnaire. Data were collected at baseline, immediately following the intervention and at 3 months and 6 months post intervention. Data collection occurred between March 2010-May 2013.

Results: The experimental group showed a non-significant improvement in anxiety symptoms over time. Generalized estimating equations revealed that the experimental group achieved a greater drop in Characteristics of Auditory Hallucinations Questionnaire score than the controls at three and 6 months post intervention. Beck Depressive Inventory II scores in the experimental group (n = 29) had significantly improved in 3 months.

Conclusion: The auditory hallucinatory symptom management programme seems to be effective in improving auditory hallucinatory symptoms and depressive symptoms in patients with schizophrenia.