Hospital admission as first-contact with a community-based psychiatric service

Abstract

The aim of this study was to understand the decision to hospitalize at the first contact, rather than utilize the other services of a community-based system of care. Using the South Verona Psychiatric Case Register, 46 first-contact patients admitted to hospital were compared to all other in-patients (n = 187) over a 2-year span with respect to socio-demographic characteristics, diagnosis (ICD-9) and symptoms (on the Present State Examination Syndrome Check List). Results suggested that first-contact hospitalized patients have significantly more neurotic depressive features. Alternatives to admission were investigated in only about one-third of depressive neurosis patients, compared to two-thirds of patients with other affective disorder diagnoses. In contrast, for patients with psychoses, admission is a second choice (except for patients with organic psychoses).

Mental health care in Italy: Basaglia’s ashes in the wind of the crisis of the last decade

“…There have certainly been other Italian centers (not many) that have produced evaluative epidemiological surveys. The investigations include reports on access to the services with or without comparative data (Amaddeo et al, 2001; Faccincani et al, 1987; Gater et al, 1995; Sytema et al, 1989) studies of cohorts without experimental design (Carta et al, 2013). There have been studies on specific interventions but not on the whole system of care (Magliano et al, 2006; Veltro et al, 2008), studies with pre–post control with process indicators (Zimmermann-Tansella et al, 1985), reports descriptive of some facility systems (Burti et al, 1986).…”