« Binge drinkers of all ages face a greater risk of dementia in later life | Main | Some mental-health experts suggest election outcome will promote stress relief »
November 10, 2008
Researchers say patients seen in EDs for intentional self-harm often fall through the cracks
Medscape (10/31, Busko) reported, "After patients are seen in a hospital emergency department (ED) for intentional self-harm, such as a drug overdose or self-imposed cuts, they often fall through the cracks in the healthcare system," according to a study published online Oct. 23 in the Annals of General Psychiatry.
Elizabeth Murphy, of the University of Manchester, and colleagues, "audited the medical records of 93 consecutive patients, aged 16 years and older, who presented to the ED at a single center after a self-harm episode over a one-month period."
The researchers found that "information about the patient's self-harm episode was conveyed to 58 of 93 of the patients' primary-care providers (62 percent) -- 26 cases by psychiatric staff only, 26 cases by the hospital's self-harm liaison team, three cases by ED staff only, and three cases by both ED staff and psychiatric staff."
The data also showed that "psychiatric staff assessed 60 percent of the patients, but only about half these assessments were forwarded to the patients' primary-care provider."
Related Links:
- "Self-Harm Patients Need Better Follow-up," Marlene Busko, MedScape, November 3, 2008.
Posted by admin at November 10, 2008 12:09 PM