Categorization of types of medical/psychiatry units based on level of acuity.

Medical/psychiatry units can be categorized by the level of acuity of medical and psychiatric illness. Type I units are categorized as those that primarily provide psychiatric care with a low level of medical acuity. Type II units include general medicine or medical subspecialty units that are associated with a psychiatric liaison service and provide low levels of psychiatric care to those admitted to the general medical setting. Type III and Type IV units are characterized by a true departure from the current ward settings and care for patients who have concurrent and more severe medical and psychiatric problems in a unified setting. Both of these units require special physical changes in the ward structure, additional nurse training, and coordinated physician coverage to function effectively.