title: Psychiatric Case Management in the Emergency Department.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The care of the mentally ill has reached a real crisis in the United States. There were more than 6.4 million visits to emergency departments (EDs) in 2010, or about 5% of total visits, involved patients whose primary diagnosis was a mental health condition or substance abuse (). That is up 28% from just 4 years earlier, according to the latest figures available from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality in Rockville, MD. Using a method called scoping, the purpose of this article is to examine the range, extent, and evidence available regarding case management as an intervention in the ED to manage mental health patients, to determine whether there is sufficient quantity and quality of evidence on this topic to conduct a meta-analysis, and to identify relevant studies that balance comprehensiveness with reasonable limitations.
  
  
  METHODS
  One solution for ensuring that the costs are contained, efficiency is maintained, and quality outcomes are achieved is the placement of a case manager in the ED. According to , because the majority of hospital admissions come through the ED, it makes sense to have case managers located there to act as gatekeepers and ensure that patients who are admitted meet criteria and are placed in the proper bed with the proper status.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  From the scoping techniques implemented in this study, the authors came to the conclusion that case management has been and can be used to effectively treat mental health patients in the emergency room. A good number of patients with psych mental health issues are frequent visitors and repeat visitors. Case management has not been used very often as a strategy for managing patients through the ED or for follow-up after the visit. Hospitals that have developed a protocol for managing these patients outside the main patient flow have had successful results. Staff training and development on psych mental health issues have been helpful in the ED.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  While there are not a large number of studies available on this topic, there is sufficient evidence to warrant further examination of this research topic. The findings in this scoping study have broader implications for research, policy, and practice. The framework of this study involved an outcomes-based approach. Clinical outcomes that positively enhance patient care and save the hospital money are necessary in the current health care environment.
authors.affiliation: Stephanie B. Turner, EdD, MSN, RN, is an Assistant Professor at the University of Alabama Capstone College of Nursing. She currently teaches adult health nursing in the undergraduate nursing program and numerous courses in the RN to MSN mobility program. Her specialty areas include emergency, critical care, and adult health nursing. Marietta P. Stanton, PhD, RN, CNAA, BC, CMAC, CCM, CNL, is a Professor of Nursing at The University of Alabama, Capstone College of Nursing. She has published a number of articles in case management. She is certified through the Center for Case Management as a Case Management Administrator.
authors.forename: Stephanie B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.forename: Marietta P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Stanton
mesh_terms: D019090:Case Management; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000451:nursing*