Early Intervention in Psychosis: Perceptions, Strengths, Criticalities, and Improvement Proposals from the Perspective of Italian Mental Healthcare Professionals.

During the 2019 training course on "Early Intervention in Psychosis" (EIP), mental health professionals from all Departments of Mental Health in the Emilia-Romagna region (Northern Italy) were provided with an update on the multi-component intervention program for early psychosis indicated in the current international guidelines. At the end of the training sessions, participants completed the "Scale of Perceived Self-Efficacy and Satisfaction in the Activity of the Psychotherapist" (SAS-P). They also answered open-ended questions, providing opinions on key challenges, suggestions for improvement, and observations on the program's strengths and criticalities. Results showed that psychotherapists felt themselves effective in facilitating therapeutic change, responding to patients' needs, and coordinating multidisciplinary teams. However, they reported difficulties in managing work-related stress, maintaining a suitable psychotherapeutic setting in public services, and influencing organizational structures. Open-ended responses highlighted other key challenges, including limited resources, poor integration between services, and communication gaps within teams. In conclusion, the findings highlight disparities among local mental health services in implementing the specialized EIP program. They also emphasize the need to address these challenges to ensure more effective and consistent interventions.