Mobility of schizophrenic patients, non-psychotic patients and the general population in a case register area.

This preliminary study attempts to evaluate the effect of a community psychiatric service on residential mobility by comparing a cohort of schizophrenic patients over a 5-year period with that of non-psychotic and general population control groups in South Verona, a case register area in Northern Italy. No significant differences were found between the groups for different types of movement (within South Verona/outside catchment area of South Verona/outside City of Verona), except for movements within South Verona between the schizophrenic group and neurotic group. The former tended to move less than the latter. The sociodemographic factors associated with movements of the general population in Verona were being male and single, whereas place of birth was less important. The results showed that in the two patient groups as well as in the general population in South Verona, the percentages of those who moved outside the case-register area ranged between 1.5%-4.4% over a one-year period, and between 7.3%-13.8% over a five-year period, indicating a relatively consistent denominator for the Case Register.