Predictors in geriatric psychiatry hospital length of stay.

This paper examined predictors of length of stay in a freestanding geriatric psychiatry hospital. Data on patient and treatment characteristics of geriatric inpatients (N = 1,593) were extracted from an archival administrative tracking database from Mary Starke Geriatric Harper Center. Five independent variables (length of time between last discharge and most recent admission, number of previous admissions, number of assaults, co-morbid medical condition, and admitting psychiatric diagnosis) were entered into a hierarchical regression model as potential predictors of length of stay in a geriatric psychiatry hospital. Number of assaults committed by the patient was the only significant predictor of length of stay, such that patients that had a greater number of assaults were more likely to have longer lengths of stay than those with fewer assaults. These findings highlight the importance of identifying patients at risk for assaultive behavior and developing effective interventions for aggression in geriatric psychiatry hospitals.