Measurement-Based Care in Mental Disorders

Per Bech received a medical degree from Copenhagen University in 1969. In 1972 he received a gold medal award from Århus University for his thesis on the dose-response relationship between cannabis (tetrahydrocannabinol) and various psychological measurements, including time experience and reaction time in simulated car driving. He completed a doctorate thesis (Dr.Med.Sci) at Copenhagen University on the clinical and psychometric validity of rating scales in depression and mania in 1981. He was appointed Professor of Psychiatry at Odense University in 1992 and in 2008 he was appointed Professor of Applied or Clinical Psychometrics at Copenhagen University. Since 1981 he has headed the Psychiatric Research Unit at The Mental Health Centre North Zealand in Hillerød (Capital Region of Denmark). He is an honorary member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists and of the European Psychiatric Association (EPA).

• Negative mental health: The ordinary symptom-orientated mental disorders.- The basic diagram of personality dimensions.- Self-reported symptom scales within the basic diagram.- Clinician-administered symptom scales within the basic diagram.- Positive mental health.- The pharmacopsychometric triangle in measurement-based care.- Diagnostic rating scales.- Social functioning: Disability.- A practical outcome evaluation plan.- Conclusion.

“In this newly published ultra-short book he presents an attractive line-up of easy-to-use scales and questionnaires to aid the diagnosis of mental disorders and monitoring of symptoms in treatment. … The book presents validated rating scales and questionnaires that are brief and easy to administer. So if you are a busy clinician, a clinical researcher or just looking for better ways to monitor the effects of your treatment, Per Bech’s book may indeed help you.” (Niels Okkels and Erik Roj Larsen, Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, Vol. 136, 2017)