Dataset Information

Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in the psychiatric emergency service.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:Dedicated regional psychiatric emergency services (PES) were proposed as a better care model for psychiatric emergencies and a possible solution to boarding of psychiatric patients in the emergency department. However, there are limited data on factors associated with prolonged length of stay (LOS) in the PES. The objective of this study was finding factors associated with prolonged LOS in the PES and moving towards a solution to this problem. METHODS:The study sample comprised 200 PES visits randomly chosen from January 2011 to December 2015 in a psychiatric hospital in Taiwan. Relevant data were collected comprehensively through the health information system and by reviewing medical records. The primary outcome was LOS longer than 24 hours while LOS longer than 48 hours was used as the secondary outcome. RESULTS:Mean LOS was 17.6±23.2 hours, with 53 (26.5%) visits lasting more than 24 hours and 15 (7.5%) visits lasting more than 48 hours. After adjusting for related confounders, LOS longer than 24 hours was associated with use of restraints in the PES (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 3.13, 95% CI = 1.59-6.15) and history of illicit substance use (aOR = 2.46, 95% CI = 1.11-5.44). LOS longer than 48 hours was associated with use of restraints in the PES (aOR = 4.11, 95% CI = 1.2-14.14), history of illicit substance use (aOR = 6.16, 95% CI = 1.37-27.62) and first time visit to the hospital (aOR = 8.54, 95% CI = 2.03-35.96). Neither outcome was associated with transfer to an inpatient unit. CONCLUSION:Prolonged LOS was common in the study sample. Discharged patients had an equally high rate of prolonged LOS as admitted patients. Therefore measures should be taken to facilitate timely discharge. Use of restraints and history of illicit substance use were common among patients with prolonged LOS.

SUBMITTER: Hsu CC

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6101399 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in the psychiatric emergency service.

Hsu Chun-Chi CC Chan Hung-Yu HY

PloS one 20180820 8

<h4>Objective</h4>Dedicated regional psychiatric emergency services (PES) were proposed as a better care model for psychiatric emergencies and a possible solution to boarding of psychiatric patients in the emergency department. However, there are limited data on factors associated with prolonged length of stay (LOS) in the PES. The objective of this study was finding factors associated with prolonged LOS in the PES and moving towards a solution to this problem.<h4>Methods</h4>The study sample co ...[more]

PMID: 30125316

Similar Datasets

Project description:Study objectiveTo assess the association of patient and organisational factors with emergency department length of stay (ED-LOS) in elderly ED patients (226565 years old) and in younger patients (<65 years old).MethodsA retrospective cohort study of internal medicine patients visiting the emergency department between September 1st 2010 and August 31st 2011 was performed. All emergency department visits by internal medicine patients 226565 years old and a random sample of internal medicine patients <65 years old were included. Organisational factors were defined as non-medical factors. ED-LOS is defined as the time between ED arrival and ED discharge or admission. Prolonged ED-LOS is defined as ≥75th percentile of ED-LOS in the study population, which was 208 minutes.ResultsData on 1782 emergency department visits by elderly patients and 597 emergency department visits by younger patients were analysed. Prolonged ED-LOS in elderly patients was associated with three organisational factors: >1 consultation during the emergency department visit (odds ratio (OR) 3.2, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.3-4.3), a higher number of diagnostic tests (OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.16-1.33) and evaluation by a medical student or non-trainee resident compared with a medical specialist (OR 4.2, 95% CI 2.0-8.8 and OR 2.3, 95% CI 1.4-3.9). In younger patients, prolonged ED-LOS was associated with >1 consultation (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.4-4.6). Factors associated with shorter ED-LOS were arrival during nights or weekends as well as a high urgency level in elderly patients and self-referral in younger patients.ConclusionOrganisational factors, such as a higher number of consultations and tests in the emergency department and a lower seniority of the physician, were the main aspects associated with prolonged ED-LOS in elderly patients. Optimisation of the organisation and coordination of emergency care is important to accommodate the needs of the continuously growing number of elderly patients in a better way.

Project description:IntroductionThe hospital admissions load and how long each patient will stay in the hospital should be known to prevent the overwhelming of the health system during coronavirus disease 2019 era. Even though the length of hospital stay could vary due to different factors, the factors that affect the stay are not well characterized yet, particularly in the resource-limited settings. Knowing the time spent by the coronavirus disease 2019 patients in the hospital and its associated factors are important to prioritize mobilizing resources, such as beds, pharmacological and non-pharmacological supplies, and health personnel. Therefore, this study was intended to determine the median and identify factors associated with the length of hospital stay among coronavirus disease 2019 cases.MethodsA facility-based cross-sectional study design was implemented on 394 randomly selected hospitalized patients. Epidata Version 3.1 software was used for data entry, and further analysis was done using Stata version 14.2 software. Frequencies, median with interquartile range, and chi-square test were performed. A logistic regression model was used to identify the association between outcome and explanatory variables. The statistical significance was declared at p-value of less than 0.05 at 95% confidence interval.ResultsThe analysis was done for a total of 394 cases admitted for coronavirus disease 2019. The median age of the study participants was 40 years with interquartile range of 28-60 years. The median length of hospital stay was 12 days with the interquartile range of 8-17 days. The patients presented with shortness of breathing (AOR = 2.74, 95% confidence interval: 1.33-5.66), incident organ failure (AOR = 3.65, 95% confidence interval: 1.15-11.58), increased leukocyte count (AOR = 0.95; 95% confidence interval: 0.91-0.99), and blood urea nitrogen (AOR = 0.98, 95% confidence interval: 0.97-0.99) had a significant association with prolonged hospital stay.ConclusionThis study demonstrated that the proportion of patients stayed above the median hospital stay of the total patients was 185 (46.9%) with the median length of 12 (interquartile range = 8-17) days. Patients presented with difficulty of breathing, had incident organ failure, had decreased leukocyte, and blood urea nitrogen level should be estimated to stay longer in the hospital. Hence, patients with prolonged hospital length of stay associating factors should be expected to consume more pharmacological and non-pharmacological resources during hospital care receiving.

Project description:Mental health patients boarding for long hours, even days, in United States emergency departments (EDs) awaiting transfer for psychiatric services has become a considerable and widespread problem. Past studies have shown average boarding times ranging from 6.8 hours to 34 hours. Most proposed solutions to this issue have focused solely on increasing available inpatient psychiatric hospital beds, rather than considering alternative emergency care designs that could provide prompt access to treatment and might reduce the need for many hospitalizations. One suggested option has been the "regional dedicated emergency psychiatric facility," which serves to evaluate and treat all mental health patients for a given area, and can accept direct transfers from other EDs. This study sought to assess the effects of a regional dedicated emergency psychiatric facility design known at the "Alameda Model" on boarding times and hospitalization rates for psychiatric patients in area EDs.Over a 30-day period beginning in January 2013, 5 community hospitals in Alameda County, California, tracked all ED patients on involuntary mental health holds to determine boarding time, defined as the difference between when they were deemed stable for psychiatric disposition and the time they were discharged from the ED for transfer to the regional psychiatric emergency service. Patients were also followed to determine the percentage admitted to inpatient psychiatric units after evaluation and treatment in the psychiatric emergency service.In a total sample of 144 patients, the average boarding time was approximately 1 hour and 48 minutes. Only 24.8% were admitted for inpatient psychiatric hospitalization from the psychiatric emergency service.The results of this study indicate that the Alameda Model of transferring patients from general hospital EDs to a regional psychiatric emergency service reduced the length of boarding times for patients awaiting psychiatric care by over 80% versus comparable state ED averages. Additionally, the psychiatric emergency service can provide assessment and treatment that may stabilize over 75% of the crisis mental health population at this level of care, thus dramatically alleviating the demand for inpatient psychiatric beds. The improved, timely access to care, along with the savings from reduced boarding times and hospitalization costs, may well justify the costs of a regional psychiatric emergency service in appropriate systems.

Dataset Information

Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in the psychiatric emergency service.

Publications

Factors associated with prolonged length of stay in the psychiatric emergency service.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets