Clinical impacts of compulsory outpatient treatment in patients with psychiatric disorders: an observational study

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Compulsory treatment is frequently applied in psychiatry practice, but it is still a controversial issue. This study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of compulsory outpatient treatment decisions in patients with psychiatric disorders.METHODS: A total of 141 patients who had compulsory outpatient treatment decisions were enrolled. To evaluate the clinical effectiveness of the compulsory outpatient treatment decisions, the number of admissions to the psychiatric emergency service, the number of hospitalization, and the total length of hospital stay of the patients 12 months before and after the compulsory treatment decision were compared.RESULTS: The patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffective disorder showed a significant reduction in the number of emergency service admission 12 months after the compulsory outpatient treatment decision. However, the reduction in the number of hospitalization and total hospital stays was only significant in patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The duration of the compulsory outpatient treatment decision and frequency of compulsory outpatient follow-up visits did not have any effect on the emergency service admissions and hospitalization profiles.CONCLUSIONS: Compulsory outpatient treatment could be effective to reduce hospital readmissions particularly in patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder whose continuous treatment is important to prevent relapses.