Patients assessed by the liaison psychiatric team in the emergency department of a regional hospital in Canada - general characteristics and gender differences.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the characteristics of liaison psychiatric patients in the emergency department (ED) of a medium sized hospital in the oil sands region of Northern Alberta.


METHODS
ED psychiatry services users were evaluated using a data assessment tool designed to capture all relevant demographic and clinical characteristics.


RESULTS
Overall, 477 patients (48.2% male) were assessed by the psychiatric team over the 12 month period. There was a fairly balanced distribution by age, ethnicity and relationship status between both sexes. The majority of patients with a history of self-harm or childhood sexual abuse were female while male patients were significantly more likely to report medication non-compliance. A higher proportion of female patients had depressive disorders and personality disorders while a higher proportion of male patients had anxiety disorders, bipolar and related disorders, schizophrenia spectrum disorders and substance-related disorders. Nearly one in five patients was admitted for inpatient treatment with a significantly higher proportion of males being admitted involuntarily.


CONCLUSIONS
There were sex-specific differences in many of the demographic and clinical measures in our ED psychiatric sample. These differences indicate a potential need for targeted education and service initiatives to promote better access to psychiatric services and treatment outcomes.
a Department of Psychiatry , University of Alberta , Edmonton , Alberta , Canada ;
Michal
M
Juhás
a Department of Psychiatry , University of Alberta , Edmonton , Alberta , Canada ;|b Department of Psychiatry , Northern Lights Regional Health Centre , Fort McMurray , Alberta , Canada.
Vincent I O
VI
Agyapong
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000416:Alberta / Q000453:epidemiology; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D004637:Emergency Services, Psychiatric / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000628:therapy; D008875:Middle Aged; D061329:Oil and Gas Fields; D012737:Sex Factors; D055815:Young Adult
Emergency department; gender differences; liaison; psychiatric