Quality of life in chronically mentally ill patients in day treatment.

A structured assessment instrument, the Quality of Life Interview, was used to explain the quality of life of seventy patients with chronic psychiatric illness attending a day treatment programme. The interview was found to have acceptable psychometric properties. Factors that best predicted the quality of life of these patients included the number of re-admissions in the last year, frequency of family contacts, satisfaction with social life, psychiatric health and adult education. The theoretical implications and potential clinical benefits of these findings for chronic psychiatric patients are discussed.