Despite efforts to reduce coercion in psychiatry, involuntary hospitalizations remain frequent, representing more than half of all admissions in some European regions. Since October 2006, only certified psychiatrists are authorized to require a compulsory admission to our facility, while before all physicians were, including residents. The aim of the present study is to assess the impact of this change of procedure on the proportion compulsory admissions. All medical records of patients admitted respectively 4 months before and 4 month after the implementation of the procedure were retrospectively analyzed. This search retrieved a total of 2,227 hospitalizations for 1,584 patients. The overall proportions of compulsory and voluntary admissions were 63.9 % and 36.1 % respectively. The average length of stay was 32 days (SD ± 64.4). During the study period, 25 % of patients experienced two hospitalizations or more. The most frequent patients' diagnoses were affective disorders (30 %), psychotic disorders (18.4 %) and substance abuse disorders (15.7 %). Compared with the period before October 2006, patients hospitalized from October 2006 up were less likely to be hospitalized on a compulsory basis (OR = 0.745, 95 % CI: 0.596-0.930). Factors associated with involuntary admission were young age (20 years or less), female gender, a diagnosis of psychotic disorder and being hospitalized for the first time. Our results strongly suggest that limiting the right to require compulsory admissions to fully certified psychiatrists can reduce the rate of compulsory versus voluntary admissions.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11126-012-9228-0 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Mental health professionals' beliefs and attitudes towards compulsory admission in Athens: a token of social stigma or good faith in psychiatry?-a cross-sectional study.
BMC Psychiatry
December 2024
Department of Psychology, Panteion University of Social & Political Sciences, Athens, Greece.
Background: Mental health professionals' (MHPs) attitudes towards involuntary admissions have not received adequate attention in efforts to curb their rates. Thus, the present study set out to (i) explore MHP attitudes regarding involuntary hospitalisation, (ii) describe their perceived dangerousness of people with severe mental illness (SMI) and their trust in psychiatry, (iii) identify the predictors of attitudes towards compulsory admissions and (iv) gauge the contribution of perceived dangerousness versus trust in psychiatry to explaining them.
Methods: A random sample of 300 mental health professionals working in public mental health services located in the Northern part of Athens and in the two psychiatric hospitals of Attica participated in the study.
Impact of the mental health law revision restricting hospitalization on healthcare utilization in South Korea using interrupted time series analysis.
Sci Rep
November 2024
Institute of Health Services Research, Yonsei University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
To reduce long hospitalization durations and the high rate of compulsory psychiatric hospitalization in Korea, a revision of the Mental Health Welfare law was passed and implemented in 2017. This study quantitatively analyzed changes in hospitalization use behavior of patients with psychotic and mood disorders after revision of the Mental Health Welfare law in South Korea. The intervention time was June 2017.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPatient-related characteristics or local tradition: what predicts the admission to a locked ward or the use of coercive measures in psychiatric inpatient treatment?
Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci
November 2024
Universitäre Psychiatrische Kliniken Basel, Universität Basel, Wilhelm Klein-Str. 27, Basel, 4002, Switzerland.
Prior research shows that locked doors and coercive measures are not only applied due to safety concerns, but also due to the specific local tradition of an institution. We examined the association of the use of coercive measures and the admission to a locked ward with person-related characteristics compared to the admission to a specific clinic. In this 15-year, naturalistic observational study, we examined 230,684 admissions to 14 German psychiatric inpatient clinics from Jan 1, 1998, to Dec 31, 2012.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDeveloping and testing Advance Choice Document implementation resources for Black African and Caribbean people with experience of compulsory psychiatric admission.
BMC Psychiatry
November 2024
Health Services and Population Research Department, David Goldberg Centre, King's College London Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, De Crespigny Park, London, SE5 8AF, UK.
Background: Advance Choice Documents (ACDs) have been recommended for use in England and Wales based on evidence from trials that show that they can reduce involuntary hospitalisation, which disproportionately affects Black African and Caribbean people. Our aim was therefore to develop and test ACD implementation resources and processes for Black people who have previously been involuntarily hospitalised and the people that support them.
Methods: Resource co-production workshops were held to inform the development of the ACD template and two types of training for all stakeholders, comprising a Recovery College course and simulation training.
[Reform of the law on compulsory admission in Belgium: more tailored healthcare?].
Tijdschr Psychiatr
October 2024
Background: The law regulating the forced or protective admission of the mentally ill person in Belgium is 34 years old. The parliament recently agreed on an extensive legislative amendment to better adapt the law to the changing mental health care system and society.
Aim: Outlining the epidemiological, clinical and legal developments regarding forced admissions in Belgium.
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!