Pb. Lieberman et al., DIMENSIONS AND PREDICTORS OF CHANGE DURING BRIEF PSYCHIATRIC-HOSPITALIZATION, General hospital psychiatry, 15(5), 1993, pp. 316-324
The effects of brief psychiatric hospitalization on patient functionin
g remain controversial and poorly defined. In this study, 217 subjects
were evaluated for the changes they experienced during a brief admiss
ion (average length of stay 23.0 +/- 16.2 days). Significant improveme
nts occurred in symptoms, global functioning, self-esteem, perceptions
of others, and ego functioning. Better multidimensional outcome corre
lated with symptomatic improvement and preadmission functioning. No ef
fects were found for age, gender, Axis I diagnosis, presence of an Axi
s II or Axis III disorder, prior hospitalization, severity of symptoms
, length of stay, or payor group. During brief hospitalization, patien
ts appear to improve in several areas of psychosocial functioning.