Patient care--who pays, and for what?

Economic considerations are increasingly affecting treatment strategies, particularly in illnesses such as schizophrenia, which have high degrees of morbidity and chronicity. Restrictions on the availability of public-sector hospitalization have produced increased pressure for shorter stays and more reliance on outpatient treatment. In turn, financial constraints are operative in both public- and private-sector outpatient care. Effective psychopharmacology, which involves facilitation of patient compliance, is essential to the cost-effective treatment of schizophrenic patients in the current economic climate.