The association between access to emergency respite and hospital admission: A longitudinal, cohort case register study

Abstract

Accessible Summary Local areas have a register of people with a learning disability who are at risk of going to hospital. This register helps learning disability services to know when a person needs extra support, such as emergency respite, to stop them going to hospital. This study aimed to see what factors were related to whether people with a learning disability went to hospital for their mental health problems. Service users on the registers in five areas from 2019 were included in this study. What support each person had while they were at risk was looked at. 51 cases were reviewed. We found a relationship between emergency respite and needing to go to hospital. This suggests that emergency respite is related to reducing the chances of someone going to hospital for their mental health problems. The chance to use emergency respite and support may help stop people with a learning disability needing to go to hospital for their mental health. This study can help services to provide the right support for people. AbstractBackgroundReducing hospital admissions for people with a learning disability is a key objective of national guidelines. However, there are currently little available data which indicate factors which might reduce the risk of hospital admission. Using a cohort of people at risk of hospital admission, this research sought to explore the association between access to emergency respite and hospital admission.MethodsThis study accessed data from 76 clients who were based within Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, who were on the Dynamic Risk Register due to assessed risk of possible hospital admission. After the employment of inclusion criteria, data from 51 clients were used in the analysis. The study accessed data from clinical records and any professionals meeting minutes (e.g., care and treatment review) from a 12‐month period; information was collected pertaining to participants’ diagnoses and the treatments and interventions that they had received.FindingsWhilst controlling for other interventions, a significant association between hospital admission and access to emergency respite was found, with emergency respite significantly reducing the odds of hospital admission (OR 0.05, CI 0 to 0.36, p = .001). Not having access to emergency respite increased the odds of hospital admission by 20.56 times.ConclusionIn the study catchment area, emergency respite appears to be significantly associated with a reduction in hospital admission, independent of other interventions offered. Further research is necessary to explore if this study's findings are replicable in other areas. This study has implications for the development of emergency respite services in local areas.