Long-Term Patterns of Acute Mental Health Service Use After a First Episode of Psychosis: Examining Ongoing Psychiatric Care Beyond the Critical Period
Abstract
The long-term patterns of acute mental health service use after treatment in an early psychosis intervention (EPI) program are not well known. The objective of this thesis was to investigate the long-term patterns of acute mental health service use. We used health administrative data to examine the patterns and risk factors associated with acute mental health service use over the of 5- to 10-year period post-EPI admission. Between years 5 to 10 post-EPI admission, approximately one quarter of people contacted acute mental health services. Factors associated with acute mental health service use during this period included younger age at admission, and prior use of acute mental health services in the first 5 years post-EPI admission. Our findings show that a subset of people with psychotic disorders continue to have contact with acute mental health services over the longer-term and suggests that the service needs of people recovering from psychosis may not be met.