Glintborg Chalotte, Hansen Tia G B
Department of Communication and Psychology, Center for Developmental & Applied Psychological Science (CeDAPS), Aalborg University, Kroghstræde 3, Aalborg 9220, Denmark.
Animals (Basel). 2017 Apr 25;7(5):33. doi: 10.3390/ani7050033.
A severe mental illness like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is known to have psychosocial consequences that can lead to a decreased quality of life. Research in Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT) has revealed that the presence of a dog can have a positive effect on health, e.g., increase quality of life and lessen depression and anxiety. However, canine companionship is not a catch-all solution. Previous research has revealed methodological limitations that prohibit any clear conclusions, as well as a sparsity of critical reflection in anecdotal reports and case studies, which means that more research is needed to contextualize the findings. There has been an increasing interest in animal-assisted intervention in Denmark in recent years. Previously, authorities could only grant service dogs to adults with physical disabilities, but now this has been extended to adults with mental illnesses. Therefore, it has become important to explore how these service dogs are incorporated into rehabilitation practices in mental health, and how rehabilitation professionals react to the use of service dogs. This paper is a case study of a person who suffers from PTSD. This study examines how the person describes the significance of having a dog during her rehabilitation process, and how this is integrated with existing rehabilitation. The case study has been developed based on a semi-structured interview. A Thematic Content analysis was used to reveal dominant patterns and categories. This study revealed a lack of communication and collaboration between public administration (social service), service dog providers, health rehabilitation services, and providers of psychological treatment. It also revealed limited access for the dog to public services, limited success in incorporating the dog into goal-directed treatment and rehabilitation procedures, a strongly felt emotional support from the dog, and a perceived stigma by having the dog wearing a vest with he words "mentally ill" printed on it.
像创伤后应激障碍（PTSD）这样的严重精神疾病，其社会心理后果会导致生活质量下降。动物辅助疗法（AAT）的研究表明，狗的陪伴对健康有积极影响，例如提高生活质量、减轻抑郁和焦虑。然而，犬类陪伴并非万能的解决方案。先前的研究揭示了方法上的局限性，这使得无法得出明确结论，同时轶事报告和案例研究中批判性反思也较为匮乏，这意味着需要更多研究来将这些发现置于具体情境中。近年来，丹麦对动物辅助干预的兴趣日益浓厚。以前，当局只允许为身体残疾的成年人提供服务犬，但现在这一范围已扩大到患有精神疾病的成年人。因此，探索这些服务犬如何融入心理健康康复实践，以及康复专业人员对使用服务犬的反应变得很重要。本文是一个关于一名创伤后应激障碍患者的案例研究。该研究考察了此人如何描述在康复过程中拥有一只狗的重要性，以及这是如何与现有的康复相结合的。该案例研究基于一次半结构化访谈展开。采用了主题内容分析法来揭示主要模式和类别。这项研究揭示了公共管理部门（社会服务）、服务犬提供者、健康康复服务机构和心理治疗提供者之间缺乏沟通与协作。研究还发现，狗获得公共服务的机会有限，将狗纳入目标导向的治疗和康复程序的成功率有限，狗给予了强烈的情感支持，以及让狗穿着印有“精神疾病患者”字样背心会带来一种耻辱感。
