[Aftercare of Psychiatric and Psychosomatic Inpatients with ICD-10 Disorders F3 and F4 (PfAD Study)].

Objective: We investigated treatment pathways after discharge from in-patient treatment and their predictors.

Methods: Within a prospective naturalistic study, 320 adult inpatients treated in four settings were examined at admission, discharge, and two follow-up time points. In addition to sociodemographic and clinical data, standardized instruments have been employed to collect data on pathways within the mental care system a half year before and one year after index treatment, respectively. Descriptive analyses and logistic regression models were applied.

Results: Inpatient admissions in the first half of the follow-up year were common in psychiatric inpatients as planned aftercare. The majority of participants received outpatient aftercare. Main predictors of both inpatient readmission and outpatient psychotherapy after discharge were the setting of the index-treatment (psychiatry versus psychosomatics) as well as previous and planned forms of care.

Conclusion: Though according to plan, the pathways of aftercare in psychiatry and psychosomatics are predominantly disconnected and show little overlap.