Kirkuk Journal of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Background: Most of the mental health illnesses in psychiatry have chronic relapsing course.
It is estimated that the readmission rate for discharged patients is approximately 40-50%
within one year of their discharge from the hospital [1]
Aim: understand the relationship between the duration of first admission in the hospital
and rates of readmission in a psychiatric hospital.
Materials and Methods: Collect all the patients admitted to Ibn rushed psychiatric hospital
in Baghdad for the first time between first of January, 2018 to first of May, 2018, were
included in this study. The hospital records of these patients were examined and the data was
collected on various variables, which included demographic variables, duration of hospital
stay, diagnosis, and the number of readmissions for a period of approximately three years.
The duration of the first hospital stay was divided into three categories, Group 1: 1-7 days,
Group 2: 8 to 14 days, Group 3:15 to 30 days.
Results: The whole sample whom entered and accepted in the study consisted of 200
patients. There was 133 patients belonged to Group 1 (1 to 7 days), 53 patients in Group 2 (8
to 14 days) and 14 patients was belong to Group 3 (15 to 30 days).
Conclusion: The length of the initial hospital stay is the only important predictor to prevent
future hospitalization. No other definite predictors for readmission that could be detected in
the study except for the length of stay in the initial admission.
Key words: First admission, readmission, psychiatric hospital