HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ALL ISSUES SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a Colleague Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Jin, H. Articles by Jeste, D. V. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Jin, H. Articles by Jeste, D. V.

Patterns of Public Mental Health Service Use by Age in Patients With Schizophrenia

Received May 14, 2003; revised June 30, July 7, 2003; accepted July 7, 2003. From the Department of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA (HJ,DPF,LL,AB,DVJ), the Psychiatry Service, VA San Diego Healthcare System (HJ,DPF,LL,AB,DVJ), the Community Research Foundation, San Diego, CA (WH), and the San Diego County Adult Mental Health Service (PG). Send correspondence to Hua Jin, M.D., Dept. of Psychiatry, UC San Diego and San Diego VAMC, 3350 La Jolla Village Drive (MC 116A), San Diego, CA 92161. e-mail: AffectJ{at}netscape.net

Objective: Authors examined the relationship between age and use of public mental health services by adults with schizophrenia in a large mental health care system. Methods: The study sample included 4,975 patients treated for schizophrenia in San Diego County's Adult Mental Health Services (AMHS) during fiscal year 1999–2000. They compared three age-groups: 18–44 years (young adults), 45–64 (middle-aged), and 65-or-older (elderly) on 1) the number of individuals treated for schizophrenia per 10,000 people in the county, and 2) the use of six different types of public mental health services, including hospitalization, emergency psychiatric unit, crisis house, outpatient clinic, day treatment, and case management. Results: Elderly patients with schizophrenia were underrepresented among AMHS users with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. The use of hospitalization, emergency room, crisis house, and day treatment was highest among young-adult patients and decreased with age. Outpatient treatment use was similar for young-adult and middle-aged patients and lower for elderly patients. The only type of service use that seemed to increase with age was case management. Even after controlling for gender, ethnicity, living situation, substance use disorder, and insurance status, most of the above-mentioned age-related differences in service use persisted. Conclusion: Among patients with schizophrenia in a public mental health system, old age was associated with significantly lower use of all mental health services except case management. Research is needed to explore reasons for this differential use of services across age-groups.

Key Words: Schizophrenia • Mental Health Services Use

This article has been cited by other articles:

				D. P. Folsom, T. Gilmer, C. Barrio, D. J. Moore, J. Bucardo, L. A. Lindamer, P. Garcia, W. Hawthorne, R. Hough, T. Patterson, et al. A Longitudinal Study of the Use of Mental Health Services by Persons With Serious Mental Illness: Do Spanish-Speaking Latinos Differ From English-Speaking Latinos and Caucasians? Am J Psychiatry, August 1, 2007; 164(8): 1173 - 1180. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				C. A. Depp, L. A. Lindamer, D. P. Folsom, T. Gilmer, R. L. Hough, P. Garcia, and D. V. Jeste Differences in Clinical Features and Mental Health Service Use in Bipolar Disorder Across the Lifespan Am J Geriatr Psychiatry, April 1, 2005; 13(4): 290 - 298. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				T. P. Gilmer, C. R. Dolder, J. P. Lacro, D. P. Folsom, L. Lindamer, P. Garcia, and D. V. Jeste Adherence to Treatment With Antipsychotic Medication and Health Care Costs Among Medicaid Beneficiaries With Schizophrenia Am J Psychiatry, April 1, 2004; 161(4): 692 - 699. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]