Abstract: ObjectiveThe trial was to examining the effectiveness and cost effects of family intervention for rehabilitating chronic outpatients with schizophrenia in the country.Methods90 subjects were randomly assigned to the family intervention group and the control group. Both groups received the same treatments, but the family intervention courses mainly containing mental health education were given to the family intervention group for one year. During the time, all subjects were evaluated with standard rating scales and self made criteria. ResultsThe family intervention group demonstrated clinical results significantly superior to those of the control group on overall improvement according to the scores on the SDSS, the SAPS, the SANS and the MRSS. Substantially, the direct and indirect average cost in the family intervention group was significantly lower than those of the control group. Conclusions Family intervention is effective not only in making the schizophrenics recover from illness but also in both increasing their social functions and reducing their medical cost.

Key words: schizophrenia, family intervention, rehabilitation, cost effect