Determinants of psychiatric inpatient admission to general hospital psychiatric wards: an epidemiological study in a region of central Italy

Objective: To determine which factors contribute to the decision to admit i ndividuals to psychiatric wards in general hospitals. Method: Data on 1,379 individuals undergoing psychiatric evaluation in eight emergency rooms in a region of central Italy were collected. A logistic regression analysis wa s used to evaluate the likelihood of psychiatric admission considering the independent effects of demographic, social, and clinical factors and of the history of psychiatric treatment. Results: The adjusted odds ratio for psy chiatric admission significantly increased with the following variables: se verity of symptoms; presence of paranoid states and schizophrenic psychoses , affective psychoses and acute psychotic conditions (with neurotic disorde rs used as reference), a history of outpatient treatment; the presence of a staff member of a community mental health facility upon presentation at th e emergency room; and the availability of beds in the psychiatric ward. Con clusion: The independent effect played by the presence of a staff member of a community mental health facility is of particular interest, suggesting t he existence of a collaborative relationship between inpatient and outpatie nt services.