Rw. Shulman et al., CHARACTERISTICS OF PSYCHOGERIATRIC PATIENT VISITS TO A GENERAL-HOSPITAL EMERGENCY ROOM, Canadian journal of psychiatry, 41(3), 1996, pp. 175-180
Objective: This study describes psychogeriatric patients who visit the
Emergency Room (ER) in a teaching hospital with a comprehensive psych
ogeriatric service. Method: A survey assessing demographic and clinica
l characteristics was completed for every psychiatric ER patient durin
g a 2-year period. Results: One hundred and seventy-three ER patients
aged over 60 (mean age 71.2) were assessed. Fifty-three percent were p
reviously known to the psychogeriatric service. The majority of these
previously known psychogeriatric patients who used the ER suffered fro
m mood disorders. The majority of new psychogeriatric patients seen in
the ER had an organic brain syndrome (OBS). Conclusions: Few OBS pati
ents who visited the ER were previously known to the psychogeriatric s
ervice but many new OBS patients accessed the psychogeriatric service
via the ER. For patients with mood disorders, particularly if suicidal
, the ER was used as part of their service delivery system.