Recovery as the Goal: Challenges in Schizophrenia Treatment

Author(s):

Michael Asbach, DMSc, PA-C, Psych-CAQ

Key Takeaways

Schizophrenia treatment should focus on recovery, not just managing positive symptoms, for better patient outcomes.
Comprehensive treatment strategies include pharmacologic management, psychoeducation, family support, and digital therapeutics.
Achieving "better but not well" is an inadequate endpoint in schizophrenia treatment.
Michael Asbach is a psychiatric physician associate and associate director at DENT Neurologic Institute.

How can we get back to recovery as the treatment goal for schizophrenia?

CONFERENCE REPORTER

Michael Asbach, DMSc, PA-C, Psych-CAQ, shared some of the challenges he faces in treating schizophrenia at the Real Psychiatry conference. For decades, treatment has focused singularly on positive symptoms because they were treatable.

"We need to get back to the idea of recovery as our treatment goal," said Asbach. "Better but not well is not a good endpoint."

Effective pharmacologic management
Psychoeducation
Family support
Prescription digital therapeutics
And more

Mr Asbach is a psychiatric physician associate and serves as associate director of interventional psychiatry at DENT Neurologic Institute in New York.