Table 3.
Assessment tools and time-points of the evaluation.
| Assessment tool | Domains covered | Assessments' timepoints | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T0 (baseline) | T1 (2 months) | T2 (4 months) | T3 (6 months) | T4 (12 months) | T5 (24 months) | ||
| Pattern of Care Schedule (PCS)—modified version | A 40-item questionnaire on pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments as well as on health care access made by the patient. It is compiled by the researcher in collaboration with the patient. If information is inadequate, or if the researcher is not sure about patients' reliability, other sources (e.g., treating physician, relatives, etc.) can be consulted | x | x | x | x | ||
| Socio-demographic schedule | Information were collected: age, gender, marital status, level of education, working condition, economic status, number of family members, illness duration, time in charge at the mental health centre (months), number of (voluntary and involuntary) hospitalizations, suicide attempts (numbers) | x | |||||
| Anthropometric schedule | It is compiled by the researcher for collecting information on weight, height, BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, resting heart rate, HDL, LDL and overall level of cholesterol, blood glucose, triglycerides and blood insulin. Moreover, the homeostatic model assessment (HOMA) index will be calculated for quantifying insulin resistance and beta-cell function as well as the Framingham Risk Score, for evaluating cardiovascular risk | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5 (SCID-5) | It is a semi-structured interview guide for making DSM-5 diagnoses. It is administered by a trained mental health professional that is familiar with the DSM-5 classification and diagnostic criteria | x | |||||
| Measurement and Treatment Research to Improve Cognition in Schizophrenia (MATRICS) Consensus Cognitive Battery—brief version | It includes the MATRICS Consensus Trail Making Test—part A, Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia: Symbol Coding, Category Fluency-Animal Naming (45, 46) | x | x | x | x | ||
| Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS) | It is a semi-structured 24-item interview on psychopathological status. The items are grouped in four subscales: positive symptoms, negative symptoms, depressive-anxiety symptoms, and manic-hostility symptoms | x | x | x | x | ||
| Cumulative Illness Rating Scale (CIRS) | It is a 14-item questionnaire including a comprehensive assessment of physical comorbidities | x | x | x | x | ||
| Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND) | It is a 6-item questionnaire assessing the intensity of physical addiction to nicotine in terms of number of cigarette smoked per day, compulsion to use, and nicotine addiction | x | x | x | x | ||
| Food Frequency Questionnaire—short version | It is a 18-item questionnaire on the frequency consumption of a variety of foods corresponding to one's usual diet. In order to compile the questionnaire, the Scotti-Bassani Atlas is used for selecting quantity of food | x | x | x | x | ||
| Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Inventory | It is a 29-items questionnaire for evaluating the subjective experience of stigma | x | x | x | x | ||
| International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ)—short form | It is a 18-item questionnaire exploring physical activity in terms of time spent in walking, in moderate-intensity and vigorous-intensity activities | x | x | x | x | ||
| Questionnaire on sexual health | It is an ad-hoc questionnaire developed by the research team, which evaluates sexual behaviours and attitudes | x | x | x | x | ||
| Leeds Dependence Questionnaire (LDQ) | It is a 10-item questionnaire designed to measure dependence for a variety of substances | x | x | x | x | ||
| Manchester Short Assessment of Quality of Life | It is a 17-item questionnaire assessing quality of life focusing on satisfaction with life as a whole and with life domains | x | x | x | x | ||
| Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS) | It is a 4-item questionnaire for evaluating adherence to pharmacological treatments | x | x | x | x | ||
| Personal and Social Performance Scale | It is a 100-point single-item rating scale, subdivided into 10 equal intervals. The ratings are based mainly on the assessment of patient's functioning in four main areas: (1) socially useful activities; (2) personal and social relationships; (3) self-care; and (4) disturbing and aggressive behaviours | x | x | x | x | ||
| Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) | It is 19-items questionnaire assessing sleep quality over a 1-month time interval | x | x | x | x | ||
| Questionnaire in lifestyle behaviours | It consists of 24 items, which evaluates dietary patterns (e.g., food eaten at breakfast or lunch time), smoking habits (e.g., numbers of cigarettes smoked per day; attempts to quit smoking), physical activity (e.g., time spent in walking per day) | x | x | x | x | ||
| The Recovery Style Questionnaire (RSQ) | It is a 39-item self-report questionnaire exploring six styles of adaptation to severe mental illness and recovery: sealing over, tends toward sealing over, mixed picture in which sealing over predominates, mixed picture in which integration predominates, tends towards integration, and integration | x | x | x | x | ||
| ECG evaluation | x | ||||||