Involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations in Greece: Contemporary research and policy implications

Stylianidis, Stelios; Georgaca, Eugenie; Peppou, Lily Εvangelia; Arvaniti, Aikaterini; Samakouri, Maria; Group, MANE

doi:10.22365/jpsych.2023.006

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 16 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Conversely, people with mental health problems living in remote areas, such as Orestiada (see Figure 1), face more challenges with regard to the above. Consistent with this finding, a study that was carried out in Thessaloniki, Greece, showed that involuntary admission rates were higher for patients living in regions away from the city [12]. A study carried out in the Canton of Vaud, Switzerland, also found that there is a variation between districts in terms of involuntary admission rates due to disparities in the availability of psychiatric services [19].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 70%

“…It is worth noting that a little more than half (51%) of the involuntary assessments resulted in involuntary admissions to the psychiatric department of UGHA. In the same period, rates of involuntary assessments turning into involuntary admissions were 96.9% in Athens and 88.5% in Thessaloniki, the two major urban Greek centers [12]. Metropolitan areas probably face more challenges in terms of continuity of care, sectorized organization of mental health services, and integrated care provided by community services.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In recent years, involuntary hospitalization has shifted from a last resort to common practice [10]. According to recent studies in Greece, admissions to psychiatric hospitals without the patient's consent range from 25% to 60% of psychiatric hospitalizations, while the prevalence of involuntary hospitalizations in the population is unknown [10][11][12]. The significantly higher rates of involuntary hospitalizations in Greece compared to most European countries render this issue in need of further systematic investigation [10].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Outcome of Involuntary Mental Health Assessment in a Psychiatric Department in Greece

Papadopoulou,

Arvaniti,

Kalamara

et al. 2023

Healthcare

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Despite their controversiality, involuntary admissions in psychiatric departments remain a central issue in mental health care. The present study aims to identify demographic and clinical factors possibly associated with emergency involuntary psychiatric assessment and its outcome in Greece. This study was carried out in the psychiatric department of the University General Hospital of Alexandroupolis (UGHA) from 1 March 2018 to 28 February 2019. The sample included 191 individuals who had been psychiatrically assessed without their consent following a prosecutorial order. The majority of the involuntary assessments resulted in hospitalization (71%), with 51% of them resulting in involuntary hospitalization. Almost all patients diagnosed with “F20–29 schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders” were subsequently admitted to the psychiatric department of the UGHA (77 of 81, 66 of them involuntarily). Higher admission rates were recorded among those who had been referred from the Prosecutor’s Office of regions that are located far from the psychiatric department of UGHA (Fisher’s exact test, p-value = 0.045). In multivariate logistic regression, prior contact with psychiatric services and having an “F20–29 schizophrenia, schizotypal and delusional disorders” diagnosis was statistically significant with admission to the hospital as an outcome variable. Our study suggests an increased risk of involuntary admission among patients with psychosis, patients who had visited a psychiatric service prior to their assessment as well as those living further away from the main psychiatric services of the hospital. Better organization of community psychiatric services in remote places from hospital central services may lead to fewer prosecutorial referrals and coercive measures.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 70%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Outcome of Involuntary Mental Health Assessment in a Psychiatric Department in Greece

Papadopoulou,

Arvaniti,

Kalamara

et al. 2023

Healthcare

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This was in Greece, where reform around the locations of mental health centers is still incomplete. According to the Greek expert, decreasing the concentration of psychiatric patients and involuntary psychiatric treatments in some hospitals in large cities such as Athens and Thessaloniki would allow better patient management and less crowding of urban psychiatric hospitals ( 45 ). A second and long-standing problem that respondents highlighted is the underfunding and scarcity of human resources within the mental health area.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Involuntary psychiatric treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. An international qualitative study

Carbone

Knapp

2023

Front. Psychiatry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

BackgroundDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, studies report that in the first few months of the lockdown there was a decrease in requests for mandatory psychiatric treatment, while, in contrast, following the second wave, the number of cases increased. This study investigates the use of compulsory psychiatric treatments internationally in the first and subsequent phases of the pandemic.MethodsSixteen key people were interviewed: eight mental health care professionals and eight scholars in Italy, Greece, China and Chile. Participants were asked to discuss their experience of the motivations, diagnoses and management of patients undergoing an involuntary psychiatric hospitalization.ResultsThe analysis through Grounded Theory highlighted four themes: (a) the culture of psychiatric care services, (b) the effect of the pandemic on involuntary hospitalizations, (c) exceptional management of hospitalization, and (d) policies and suggestions for more inclusive mental health treatments.ConclusionDuring the first wave, respondents reported a decrease in the use of involuntary treatments, while a gradual increase was seen in the following months. Italy extended compulsory psychiatric treatment to a group of new users, including young people and adolescents with acute crises; in other contexts, the main users are chronic psychiatric patients.

show abstract

Length of hospital stay in involuntary admissions in Greece: a 10-year retrospective observational study

Bakola,

Peritogiannis,

Kitsou

et al. 2024

Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Purpose The treatment of mental disorders has shifted from inpatient wards to community-based settings in recent years, but some patients may still have to be admitted to inpatient wards, sometimes involuntarily. It is important to maintain the length of hospital stay (LoS) as short as possible while still providing adequate care. The present study aimed to explore the factors associated with the LoS in involuntarily admitted psychiatric patients. Methods A ten-year retrospective chart review of 332 patients admitted involuntarily to the inpatient psychiatric ward of the General University Hospital of Ioannina, Northwestern Greece, between 2008 and 2017 was conducted. Results The mean LoS was 23.8 (SD = 33.7) days and was relatively stable over the years. Longer-stay hospitalization was associated with schizophrenia-spectrum disorder diagnosis, previous hospitalizations and the use of mechanical restraint, whereas patients in residential care experienced significantly longer LoS (52.6 days) than those living with a caregiver (23.5 days) or alone (19.4 days). Older age at disease onset was associated with shorter LoS, whereas no statistically significant differences were observed with regard to gender. Conclusion While some of our findings were in line with recent findings from other countries, others could not be replicated. It seems that multiple factors influence LoS and the identification of these factors could help clinicians and policy makers to design more targeted and cost-effective interventions. The optimization of LoS in involuntary admissions could improve patients’ outcomes and lead to more efficient use of resources.

show abstract

Involuntary psychiatric hospitalizations in Greece: Contemporary research and policy implications

Cited by 6 publications

References 16 publications

Outcome of Involuntary Mental Health Assessment in a Psychiatric Department in Greece

Outcome of Involuntary Mental Health Assessment in a Psychiatric Department in Greece

Involuntary psychiatric treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic. An international qualitative study

Length of hospital stay in involuntary admissions in Greece: a 10-year retrospective observational study

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About