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Admissions to a day hospital and to a general hospital psychiatric unit in a new community psychiatric service

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2014

Anil P Joseph
Affiliation:
Dept of Psychiatry, Leighton Hospital, Middlewich Road, Crewe, Cheshire CW1 4QJ, England
Ruth Loane
Affiliation:
South Kildare Mental Health Service, Abbeyview, Castledermot, Co Kildare, Ireland
John Sheehan
Affiliation:
Mater Misericordiae Hospital, Sisters of Mercy, Eccles St, Dublin 7, Ireland

Abstract

Objective: To conduct an audit of the patients treated at a day hospital or in an inpatient unit of a district general hospital from the South Kildare sector of the Kildare Mental Health Service, a new community based psychiatric service.

Method: Retrospective case note review of all admissions over a six month period. ICD-9 diagnosis used.

Results: There were 39 and 29 admissions to the inpatient unit and day hospital respectively. The average duration of stay in the inpatient unit was 14 days, 66% were discharged home and 33% discharged to the day hospital. The average duration of stay was 30 days in the day hospital, 62% were discharged home and 17% discharged to the inpatient unit.

Conclusions: The trend was to treat more neurotic patients in the day hospital; psychotic patients were treated in both settings; the proportion of patients discharged home was similar. The duration of stay was longer in the day hospital.

Type
Audits
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

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