Psychiatric Patients Boarded In Hospital EDs Create Crisis For Patient Care And Hospital Finances

Circle Connections: New Products & Services With the total number of psychiatric inpatient beds plummeting nationally, hospitals are devising innovative ways of handling mentally ill patients who come to the emergency department as an alternative to "boarding" them in holding rooms and hallways while they await treatment. These strategies include collaborating with other hospitals to place psychiatric patients in open beds, using separate psychiatric beds, setting up crisis triage centers, and referring patients to residential treatment centers. They're striving to get mentally ill people help before they hit a crisis, including arranging appointments with mental healthcare providers and contacting . . .