Quality of life for patients with a personality disorder – comparison of patients in two settings: an English special hospital and a Dutch TBS clinic

There are differing approaches to the management of people with a severe personality disorder in the UK and The Netherlands. Few comparative studies exist. This study describes the use of an adapted version of the Lancashire Quality of life profile as a patient based‐outcome measure. Method A cross‐sectional sample of 37 patients was interviewed at each site. Result Patients in the Dutch service reported a significantly higher quality of life which could not be explained by better objective circumstances. Discussion The data collected do not explain why the Dutch patients reported a higher quality of life. It is suggested that this finding was related to more extensive therapeutic activity and greater therapeutic optimism in the Dutch service. There is a need for critical scrutiny of the appropriateness of quality of life measures in offender patients before they are accepted for use as an outcome measure. Copyright © 2001 Whurr Publishers Ltd.