Bed requirements for an area psychogeriatric service.

Psychiatric services for the elderly are being developed in various areas in Australia, but guidelines on the number of beds needed are largely based on overseas experience. A review of all admissions of elderly people to the three psychiatric units in one part of Sydney over a ten-year period (1977-1987) allows an estimate of acute and medium-stay bed requirements. There were 444 male and 952 female admissions of persons aged 65 or more during the ten years. Mean length of stay was estimated to be 33.5 days, those with depressive disorders staying longest (41.7 days). Caution is needed when drawing conclusions about bed requirements, since they vary according to management practices, alternative support services, demographics, etc. Tentatively it is suggested that for a population of 32,000 persons aged 65 or more a minimum of 22 acute psychiatric beds are required.