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Psychiatry Res., 2023 Mar;321:115089 | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psychres.2023.115089 The impact of the Mental Health Act revision for deinstitutionalization in Korea on the crime rate of people with schizophrenia

Agnus M. Kim ^a, Jee Hoon Sohn ^b,c

^aDepartment of Health Policy and Management, Seoul National University College of Medicine, 103, Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080, Republic of Korea
^bPublic Healthcare Center, Seoul National University Hospital, 101, Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080, Republic of Korea
^cDepartment of Psychiatry, Seoul National University Hospital, 101, Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul, 03080, Republic of Korea

Corresponding authors: Agnus M. Kim, Jee Hoon Sohn

Abstract

This study examined changes in the crime rates of people with schizophrenia in Korea in comparison with the general population after the Mental Health Act revision for deinstitutionalization in 2017. The crime rates of people with schizophrenia and the general population were calculated from 2012 to 2021 using the Korean National Police Agency crime statistics. The effects of the law revision in 2017 on the crime rates were assessed using the interrupted time series and difference-in-difference analyses. The crime rates of people with schizophrenia tended to be lower than the general population except for murder and arson, which were 5.3 and 11.4 times, respectively, that of the general population. While no significant effect of the revision was found in the interrupted times series analysis, the difference-in-differences analysis indicated that the total crime rates and the rates of violence and public order crime increased among people with schizophrenia compared with the general population. The revision of the Mental Health Act for deinstitutionalization did not lead to an increase in the murder rate of people with schizophrenia as is commonly thought. However, the increases in overall crime and violence rates of people with schizophrenia suggest that the deinstitutionalized patients may not have been successfully relocated into the community. The increase in crime after the revision should be interpreted as a call for well-resourced community care rather than the reason for re-transfer of patients to hospitals.

논문정보

형식Research article
게재일2023년 03월 (BRIC 등록일 2023-05-08)
연구진국내 연구진
분야 의약학 > 응용의학

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