Recidivism in inpatient child psychiatric hospitals

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to address the problems of children who have emotional and mental disorders that impact on their daily lives and contribute to hospitalization. The exploratory study will attempt to identify causes for rehospitalization of children at Rockland Children's Psychiatric Center, an inpatient state psychiatric hospital.;Inpatient psychiatric treatment is the most restrictive level in the continuum of care in the child mental health system. Children who are frequently rehospitalized present concerns to the public for a variety of reasons.;Study findings may suggest that therapeutic support services present in the community contribute to the prevention of recidivism. Characteristics of the problems of the child and family may contribute to the recidivism rate. Also important is the interventions administered during hospitalization.;The results indicate that community supports and family/service provider involvement could not determine the importance in preventing hospitalization. Both first time admissions and those with multiple admissions had use and accessibility to the same services.