Turning towards recovery in forensic psychiatric inpatients - a study based on staff experience
Sammanfattning
Many individuals sentenced to forensic psychiatric care fail in the rehabilitation process,
resulting in long-term inpatient hospital care. The concepts of turning points and treatment readiness
in forensic settings should therefore be afforded more attention. Much can be learned from the
features that characterize trajectories of recovery and processes related to turning points. The aim of
this study was to explore forensic nursing staff’s experiences of forensic psychiatric patients’ turning
towards recovery. A qualitative content analysis was used to analyse interviews with 13 forensic
psychiatric nursing staff. Analysis of the data revealed two main themes with implications for clinical
practice: promoting a turning point and recognizing a turning point. In the first of these, the emphasis
was on actions and conditions that must exist to promote a turning. In the second, the main
experiences related to recognizing a turning point were stories about visible and perceptible changes
in the patient. The experiences that stood out most distinctly were those of being able to wait out the
patient, and having patience when there was a lack of progression. The composition of staff and
patients contributed to whether or not the environment was perceived as salutary.