Monitoring inpatient length of stay in a community mental health center.
The authors assess their experience with reviewing the length of stay of inpatients in a mental health facility. The study yielded data that refine the review process and suggest a rationale for selection of cases for review that may have educational value both to the admitting staff and physician-reviewers. The authors urge experimentation with length of stay norms which reflect specified treatment protocols related to diagnosis, rather than reliance on diagnosis alone.
D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007902:Length of Stay; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy; D014600:Utilization Review