32% Of Youth Psychiatric Emergency Visits Lasted Over 12 Hours Waiting For An Open Psychiatric Bed

Nearly one-third (32%) of pediatric mental health emergency department (ED) visits leading to admission or transfer lasted over 12 hours, and more than one in eight exceeded 24 hours, because youth were waiting for an open psychiatric bed. The statistics are from an analysis of nationally representative data from 2018 to 2022. The study found that seven out of 10 children aged 5 to 17 years staying in the ED for over 12 hours were there due to suicidal thoughts or attempts, and more than half were there for aggressive behaviors.

The researchers analyzed data from the 2018-2022 . . .