The charts of 100 patients with a primary diagnosis of depressive
neurosis were subjected to retrospective audit using a format adapted from
the American Psychiatric Association's Model Criteria Sets. Nineteen of the
33 unjustified variations from the audit criteria involved variations from
the 8-28 day length of hospital stay. The author raises the question of
whether the lower limit of 8 days is sufficiently flexible to permit
hospitalization of acutely suicidal patients who can be discharged to
outpatient care in less than 8 days.Abstract Teaser