Functional Adaptation Skills Training (FAST)

An Evidence-Based Practice

Description

Functional Adaptation Skills Training (FAST) is an intervention for adult patients 40 years and older living in board-and-care facilities who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. The intervention is manualized and based on social cognitive theory and independent living skills programs. FAST targets six areas of everyday functioning: medication management, social skills, communication skills, organization and planning, transportation, and financial management. Participants in FAST meet once per week, in a group format, over the course of 24 weeks. Each session lasts approximately 2 hours and is led by a master's- or doctoral-level therapist or by a nursing paraprofessional in the board-and-care facility.

Goal / Mission

The goal of FAST is to improve patients' independence and quality of life.

Impact

Studies have shown that FAST-treated patients' performance on everyday living skills improved significantly compared to non-participants. They also demonstrated significant improvement in social and communication skills at 6-month follow-up.

Results / Accomplishments

FAST was delivered at approximately 30 board-and-care homes in San Diego County, California. Each intervention lasted 18 months. A total of 240 individuals participated. Outcomes included the following:

In one study, FAST-treated patients' performance on everyday living skills improved significantly immediately postintervention compared to patients randomized to the treatment-as-usual condition (received their usual medications). Everyday functioning also remained significantly better at a 3-month maintenance follow-up period, p < 0.0016.

In another study, FAST-treated patients improved significantly in everyday living skills at 6-month follow-up compared to patients randomized to an attention control condition, p = 0.046.

Patients randomized to FAST intervention compared to the participants in the attention control condition demonstrated significant improvement in social and communication skills at 6-month follow-up, p = 0.003.

About this Promising Practice

Organization(s)
University of California, San Diego
Primary Contact
Thomas Patterson
University of California, San Diego
Psychiatry
9500 Gilman Drive #0680
La Jolla, CA 92093
858-534-3354
tpatterson@ucsd.edu
http://profiles.ucsd.edu/thomas.patterson
Topics
Health / Mental Health & Mental Disorders
Organization(s)
University of California, San Diego
Source
SAMHSA's National Registry of Evidence-Based Practices and Programs (NREPP)
Date of publication
Mar 2007
Location
San Diego, CA
For more details
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16814526
Target Audience
Adults

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Related Content for: Functional Adaptation Skills Training (FAST)

An Evidence-Based Practice meets the following HCI criteria:

  1. The program description includes at a minimum: the sponsoring organization, program goals, program implementation steps, and outcomes that have demonstrated program success in achieving the program goal in one or more localities.
  2. The results from an evaluation of the program include quantitative measures showing improvement in the outcome(s) of interest after the implementation of the program (i.e. increase in smoking cessation, not just the delivery of a smoking cessation program). The outcome measure(s) is/are compared at relevant time periods before and after the intervention or program implementation. Alternatively, the evaluation study compares the outcome(s) between an intervention group and an appropriate control group.
  3. The study is of peer-review quality and presents numbers in a scientific manner; measurements of precision and reliability are included (e.g. confidence intervals, standard errors), results from statistical tests show a significant difference or change in the outcome measure(s), and relevant point estimates and p-values are presented. Note: if the results from an evaluation of a program are presented in a scientific manner and the outcome measure is improved compared to the baseline measurement or the control group but the difference is not statistically significant, the practice is classified as effective and not evidence-based.