Criteria for psychiatric hospitalization: experience with a checklist for chart review.

The authors report their experience with a 12-item checklist used to score need for hospitalization. The checklist was filled in and scored by research assistants who reviewed the charts of 100 hospitalized and 50 nonhospitalized patients. A written opinion of a senior clinical consultant was available for hospitalized patients whose charts were rated low in need for hospitalization and for nonhospitalized patients whose charts were rated high. The checklist scores differentiated the two groups of patients. The authors can conclude that the checklist can be a valuable tool in a review process that culminates in review by an experienced clinician.