WHO IS A HEAVY SERVICE USER - PRELIMINARY DEVELOPMENT OF A SCREENING INSTRUMENT FOR PROSPECTIVE CONSUMERS OF A MOBILE INTENSIVE TREATMENT TEAM

Objective: The mobile intensive treatment team (MITT) of the Valley In tegrated Adult Mental Health Service in Brisbane, Australia, aims to p rovide services in the community to people with severe and persistent mental illness who have traditionally been heavily reliant on inpatien t services (i.e. heavy service users). The MITT screening instrument ( MITTSI) was developed to provide an objective measure to appropriately identify patients for referral to the service, Method: A literature r eview and a panel of multidisciplinary clinicians were consulted to id entify a list of specific attributes that would assist in the detectio n of heavy service users. These attributes were then formulated into a n easy-to-administer screening instrument entitled the MITTSI. The MIT TSI was administered in an interview format to MITT case managers (int ensive case management) and to case managers in standard case manageme nt with prospective MITT patients (prospective heavy service users). R esults: Analyses of the responses indicated support for the MITTSI as a valid screening instrument in identifying heavy service users and fo r determining appropriate patients for referral to the MITT. Conclusio n: The MITTSI is an easy-to-administer screening instrument which prov ides clear guidelines for inclusion and exclusion, and is an objective measure regarding the patients' urgency for referral to the MITT. Fol low-up of the MITTSI within a broader, longer-term project will attemp t to further refine the MITTSI and to further determine its validity. Outcomes will be published at a later stage.