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Service innovations

An outreach support team for older people with mental illness - crisis intervention

University of Liverpool, EMI Academic Unit, St Catherine’s Hospital, Derby Road, Birkenhead CH42 0LQ

Lynn Scally, Outreach Support Nurse

Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Trust

Paul Edwards, Effective Practice Co-ordinator

Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Trust

Jacqueline Wood, Research Assistant

University of Liverpool, Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Trust

Declaration of interest

The project was funded by the Cheshire and Wirral (NHS) Partnership Trust in collaboration with the University of Liverpool.

Abstract

AIMS AND METHOD

We describe activity and outcome concerning a consecutive series of older community patients referred to an outreach support team while waiting for acute psychiatric admission.

RESULTS

Forty patients on an admissions waiting list who were referred to the outreach support team were followed up. Each patient was reassessed for admission by the responsible medical officer when an in-patient bed became available. Thirty patients who would have been admitted (if a bed had been available at the time of the first assessment) remained at home and did not need hospitalisation.

CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS

This study suggests that intensive domiciliary support might offer an acceptable form of crisis intervention for older people with mental illness. Further research is needed before generalisation of these findings can be recommended.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				C. Dibben, H. Saeed, K. Stagias, G. M. Khandaker, and J. S. Rubinsztein Crisis resolution and home treatment teams for older people with mental illness Psychiatr. Bull., July 1, 2008; 32(7): 268 - 270. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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