Niklaus Stulz1, Lea Wyder2, Lienhard Maeck3, Matthias Hilpert4, Helmut Lerzer5, Eduard Zander3, Wolfram Kawohl6, Martin Grosse Holtforth7, Ulrich Schnyder8, Urs Hepp9. 1. Head of Research, Integrated Psychiatric Services Winterthur - Zurcher Unterland; Senior Researcher (Former Head of Research), Psychiatric Services Aargau; and Research Associate, Department of Psychology, University of Berne, Switzerland. 2. Research Associate, Psychiatric Services Aargau; and Former PhD Student, Department of Psychology, University of Berne, Switzerland. 3. Senior Physician, Psychiatric Services Aargau, Switzerland. 4. Deputy Head of Department, Psychiatric Services Aargau, Switzerland. 5. Deputy Head of Nursing Services, Psychiatric Services Aargau, Switzerland. 6. Head of Department, Psychiatric Services Aargau, Switzerland. 7. Associate Professor, Department of Psychology, University of Berne; and Head Researcher, Division of Psychosomatic Medicine, Department of Neurology, Inselspital, University Hospital Berne, Switzerland. 8. Emeritus Professor, University of Zurich, Switzerland. 9. Medical Director, Integrated Psychiatric Services Winterthur - Zurcher Unterland, Switzerland.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Home treatment has been proposed as an alternative to acute in-patient care for mentally ill patients. However, there is only moderate evidence in support of home treatment. AIMS: To test whether and to what degree home treatment services would enable a reduction (substitution) of hospital use. METHOD: A total of 707 consecutively admitted adult patients with a broad spectrum of mental disorders (ICD-10: F2-F6, F8-F9, Z) experiencing crises that necessitated immediate admission to hospital, were randomly allocated to either a service model including a home treatment alternative to hospital care (experimental group) or a conventional service model that lacked a home treatment alternative to in-patient care (control group) (trial registration at ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02322437). RESULTS: The mean number of hospital days per patient within 24 months after the index crisis necessitating hospital admission (primary outcome) was reduced by 30.4% (mean 41.3 v. 59.3, P<0.001) when a home treatment team was available (intention-to-treat analysis). Regarding secondary outcomes, average overall treatment duration (hospital days + home treatment days) per patient (mean 50.4 v. 59.3, P = 0.969) and mean number of hospital admissions per patient (mean 1.86 v. 1.93, P = 0.885) did not differ statistically significantly between the experimental and control groups within 24 months after the index crisis. There were no significant between-group differences regarding clinical and social outcomes (Health of the Nation Outcome Scales: mean 9.9 v. 9.7, P = 0.652) or patient satisfaction with care (Perception of Care questionnaire: mean 0.78 v. 0.80, P = 0.242). CONCLUSIONS: Home treatment services can reduce hospital use among severely ill patients in acute crises and seem to result in comparable clinical/social outcomes and patient satisfaction as standard in-patient care.
RCT Entities:
BACKGROUND: Home treatment has been proposed as an alternative to acute in-patient care for mentally illpatients. However, there is only moderate evidence in support of home treatment. AIMS: To test whether and to what degree home treatment services would enable a reduction (substitution) of hospital use. METHOD: A total of 707 consecutively admitted adult patients with a broad spectrum of mental disorders (ICD-10: F2-F6, F8-F9, Z) experiencing crises that necessitated immediate admission to hospital, were randomly allocated to either a service model including a home treatment alternative to hospital care (experimental group) or a conventional service model that lacked a home treatment alternative to in-patient care (control group) (trial registration at ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02322437). RESULTS: The mean number of hospital days per patient within 24 months after the index crisis necessitating hospital admission (primary outcome) was reduced by 30.4% (mean 41.3 v. 59.3, P<0.001) when a home treatment team was available (intention-to-treat analysis). Regarding secondary outcomes, average overall treatment duration (hospital days + home treatment days) per patient (mean 50.4 v. 59.3, P = 0.969) and mean number of hospital admissions per patient (mean 1.86 v. 1.93, P = 0.885) did not differ statistically significantly between the experimental and control groups within 24 months after the index crisis. There were no significant between-group differences regarding clinical and social outcomes (Health of the Nation Outcome Scales: mean 9.9 v. 9.7, P = 0.652) or patient satisfaction with care (Perception of Care questionnaire: mean 0.78 v. 0.80, P = 0.242). CONCLUSIONS: Home treatment services can reduce hospital use among severely ill patients in acute crises and seem to result in comparable clinical/social outcomes and patient satisfaction as standard in-patient care.
Entities:
Keywords:
Mental health services; acute treatment; in-patient-equivalent treatment; outreach services
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