PSYCHIATRY / Concerns Over Crowded Hospitals

Psychiatric hospitals are more crowded than they’ve been in years, a new report says, raising concerns about whether they can accommodate the growing need for mental health and addiction services. And as more hospitals close or consolidate, reducing the number of available beds, that puts additional pressure on those that are still open.

Information collected by the National Assn. of Psychiatric Health Systems indicates that hospital occupancy was up 11% from 1999 to 2000, and up 24.4% since 1996.

However, patients aren’t staying in psychiatric hospitals as long as in years past. They averaged a 10-day stay in 2000 and 1999; back in 1991, their stays averaged 23.1 days.

The bigger emphasis on treating mental health and addiction through outpatient care is reflected in higher numbers of outpatient visits and outpatient admissions, the association reported in its 2001 annual survey. Its member hospitals each typically saw 1,223 inpatients in 2000.