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Decreasing wait times for patients with mental health diagnosis in the emergency setting
Dissertation   Open access

Decreasing wait times for patients with mental health diagnosis in the emergency setting

Marissa L. Martin
Doctor of Nursing Practice (D.N.P.), Drexel University
Jun 2021
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00001507
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Abstract

Hospitals--Emergency services Hospital patients--Mental health Crisis intervention (Mental health services)
Patient's with mental health diagnosis seek care in emergency department (ED) environments when unable to access necessary resources in other outpatient settings. These patients are frequently found to require inpatient mental health treatment and await placement in the ED environment. While waiting in the ED for inpatient placement, commonly called boarding, patients with mental health diagnosis frequently do not receive mental health care and their initiation of treatment is delayed. This project explored the impact of mental health evaluation and treatment intervention in the ED setting on patient length of stay and decreasing patient wait times for patients with mental health diagnosis. The interventions will include a consultation with a mental health provider to initiate treatment planning for the patient while they remain in the ED. It was expected that these treatment interventions would decrease the ED length of stay for patients with mental health diagnosis. Research shows that extended lengths of stay for patients with mental health diagnoses in the ED environment has negative impacts for both patients with a mental health diagnosis, other patients, and care providers. Keywords: mental health, length of stay, emergency department, treatment

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