A retrospective study of medical comorbidities in psychogeriatric patients.
BACKGROUND
This study contributes further research into the assessment and treatment of older psychiatric patients with medical comorbidities.


METHODS
A retrospective file audit was conducted at the acute inpatient psychogeriatric unit of St Vincent's Aged Mental Health Service, Melbourne, in order to determine the prevalence of certain medical comorbidities and the nature of medical interventions provided for psychogeriatric inpatients.


RESULTS
This study, investigating 165 admissions into an acute inpatient psychogeriatric unit, highlights that psychiatric and medical comorbidities are routine in this population: the vast majority (91.5%) of all inpatients had at least one medical comorbidity.


CONCLUSIONS
As the population ages, psychogeriatric wards are likely to see more of the oldest-olds, who are likely to have comorbid medical illnesses. Currently, appropriate detection, investigation, and management of these illnesses are often suboptimal and can affect quality of life, increase mortality, and complicate treatment. This paper adds to the literature about the need for integrating medical and psychiatric care to create a more comprehensive strategy for treating the older person with psychiatric illness.
Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.|St Vincent's Aged Mental Health Service, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.|Neuropsychiatry Unit, Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Anita M Y
AM
Goh
Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Alissa
A
Westphal
Department of Nursing, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Teresa
T
Daws
St Vincent's Aged Mental Health Service, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Sophie
S
Gascoigne-Cohen
Department of Nursing, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.|St Vincent's Aged Mental Health Service, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Bridget
B
Hamilton
Academic Unit for Psychiatry of Old Age, Department of Psychiatry, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.|St Vincent's Aged Mental Health Service, St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.|School of Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, WA Centre for Health & Ageing, The University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
Nicola T
NT
Lautenschlager
D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D005852:Geriatric Psychiatry; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D017678:Sex Distribution
ageing; comorbidities; medical illness; mental illness; psychogeriatric