Sp. Segal et al., THE QUALITY OF PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY EVALUATIONS AND PATIENT OUTCOMESIN COUNTY HOSPITALS, American journal of public health, 85(10), 1995, pp. 1429-1431
Quality of care is widely assumed to be related to patient outcomes, b
ut little is known about care in relation to outcomes in county genera
l hospital psychiatric emergency services. It was hypothesized that co
nformity to professional standards (technical quality) and engagement
of the patient (artful care) in psychiatric emergency services evaluat
ions would contribute to improved patient functioning (Global Assessme
nt Scale score) and appropriate disposition. A total of 583 cases in s
even facilities were analyzed. Conformity to technical standards of ca
re was associated with retention even after constraints, biases, and a
dmission criteria had been taken into account. Conversely, artful care
was associated with lower probability of retention and improved funct
ioning.