Acute Psychiatric Services in the General Hospital: II. Current Status of Emergency Psychiatric Services
HOWARD T. BLANE PH.D.1,
JAMES J. MULLER PH.D.1, , and
MORRIS E. CHAFETZ M.D.2
1 Assistant Psycologist, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Mass. 02114, Associate in Psycology, Harvard Medical School
2 Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Mass. 02114, Director of the Alcohol Clinic and Acute Psychiatric Service, Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
After reviewing emergency services in general hospitals, the authors conclude that only a few of them have innovative, community-oriented emergency programs; most seem to follow traditional practices. The authors suggest that we recognize that large segments of the population will always turn to the general hospital for emergency care: the potential for early psychiatric casefinding and preventive intervention with this group is substantial.
