Citation

Schene AH. Curr. Opin. Psychiatry 2004; 17(4): 303-309.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/01.yco.0000133834.49790.9d

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

PURPOSE of review: The aim of this article is to review recent literature on partial hospitalization and day care in order to answer the following questions: (1) For what percentage of patients otherwise hospitalized is partial hospitalization a good alternative? (2) What is the (cost)-effectiveness of partial hospitalization in comparison with full hospitalization? (3) What is the (cost)-effectiveness of partial hospitalization in comparison with outpatient treatment and day care? Recent findings: Partial hospitalization is a good alternative for about one third of patients in need of full hospitalization. There seem to be no disadvantages regarding recovery (symptoms and social functioning), readmissions, suicide risk and unemployment at follow-up, while symptom reduction might be even more rapid in partial hospitalization. Families are no more burdened, while patients are more satisfied with services. Costs might be lower. It is far less clear what partial hospitalization has to offer patients who have no acute psychiatric illness but for whom their more severe psychopathology nevertheless does not respond to regular outpatient treatment. Summary: In current mental health care services partial hospitalization needs a more dominant position as an alternative for full hospitalization. Partial hospitalization or day care as an alternative for outpatient treatment certainly needs more research. Here the main unresolved question is whether partial hospitalization or day care has cost-effective advantages over continued outpatient treatment. Further research on partial hospitalization should be executed on more homogeneous diagnostic groups. Treatments of proven efficacy should be given by the same staff within the two different settings (partial hospitalization or day care and outpatient) in order to study their effectiveness. © 2004 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Language: en

Keywords

United States; human; counseling; systematic review; quality of life; United Kingdom; depression; schizophrenia; psychosis; hospitalization; treatment outcome; review; outpatient; eating disorder; mental disease; mental health care; personality disorder; health program; health care quality; community care; length of stay; patient care; recurrent disease; hospital patient; long term care; mental hospital; cost effectiveness analysis; patient satisfaction; sample size; hospital bed; intermethod comparison; day hospital; Day treatment; Day hospital; Day care; Day centre; Day clinic; Partial hospital; Partial hospitalization