Sex differences in the contact rates and utilization of psychiatric services. A three-year follow-up study in northern Finland.

Sex differences in the use of psychiatric services were studied in the Oulu University Central Hospital in Finland during a three-year follow-up. A one-year treated incidence cohort of new patients was used. The total cohort comprised 537 patients (46.7% were males). The annual incidence rate was 6.7 per 1,000 members of the adult population for both males and females. Compared to females, males were younger, more often unemployed, unmarried and lived alone or with parents, and did not as often have an apartment of their own. Males predominated among organic psychoses, personality disorders and dependencies, females among neurotic disorders. Males more often had had previous inpatient care and inpatient care at index contact, and had more admissions, compulsory admissions and emergency outpatient contacts than females. However, there were no sex differences in the use of planned outpatient contacts, in the duration of hospital care and in the total consumption of psychiatric care. Male gender was an independent predictor of hospital admissions.