A Systematic Approach to Disposition Decisions
THODORE W. LOREI M.S.W.1, and
LEE GUREL PH.D.2
1 Research Coordinator, Program Evaluation Staff, Office of the Assistant Chief Medical Director for Professional Services, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Veterans Administration Hospital, 50 Irving St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20422
2 Director, Program Evaluation Staff, Office of the Assistant Chief Medical Director for Professional Services, Department of Medicine and Surgery, Veterans Administration Hospital, 50 Irving St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20422
The authors report an attempt to apply a decision-theoretic approach to solving the problem of deciding whether or not to release a patient from a psychiatric hospital. Personnel from various disciplines in 12 Veterans Administration hospitals developed an "outcome inventory" that represented the major concerns hospital staff members had when they were considering whether a patient should be released or retained. The authors believe that use of the outcome inventory approach will enable a decision maker to keep his thinking straight and preclude any one feature of the problem from achieving undue importance.
