Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T07:25:53.412Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Are national standards really national? A survey of seven PICUs

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 December 2009

Stephen Dye ,
Navjyoat Chhina  and
Steve Brown
Stephen Dye*
Affiliation:
Consultant Psychiatrist, Suffolk Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust
Navjyoat Chhina
Affiliation:
Consultant Psychiatrist, Cumbria Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Steve Brown
Affiliation:
Consultant Psychiatrist, Hampshire Partnership NHS Trust
*
Correspondence to: Dr Stephen Dye, Suffolk Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust, St Clement’s Hospital, Foxhall Rd, Ipswich, IP3 8LS UK. E-mail: stephen.dye@smhp.nhs.uk
Get access

Abstract

Background: Psychiatric intensive care units (PICUs) initially developed in a haphazard fashion. In the UK, in an attempt to standardise quality of services, guidance for PICUs was published in 2002. Subsequently there has been a paucity of information outlining compliance with standards within different units.

Aims: To describe adherence to a subset of national standards in the care of 332 patients admitted consecutively to seven English PICUs.

Methods: Prospective, multi-centre patient case note analysis and staff questionnaire for each patient admitted.

Results: There was significant variation in different PICUs’ compliance with standards. Seventeen percent of patients were deemed not to meet basic criteria for admission to PICU. Pre-admission assessment and identification of treatment aims were poorly adhered to. Inappropriate mix of gender within patients occurred following 33% of admissions.

Conclusions: Implementation of national standards varies between different PICUs according to local policy and interface between acute wards and PICUs. This highlights the importance of, and challenge for, a national accreditation scheme.

Keywords

Psychiatric intensive carequalitystandards
Type
Original Article
Information
Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care , Volume 6 , Issue 2 , December 2010 , pp. 73 - 81
Copyright
Copyright © NAPICU 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Beer, M.D., Paton, C. and Pereira, S. (1997) Hotbeds of general psychiatry: A national survey of psychiatric intensive care units. Psychiatric Bulletin. 21: 142–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bowers, L., Jeffery, D., Bilgin, H., Jarrett, M., Simpson, A. and Jones, J. (2008) Psychiatric intensive care units: A literature review. International Journal of Social Psychiatry. 54(1): 56–68.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Brown, S., Chhina, N. and Dye, S. (2008) The psychiatric intensive care unit: A prospective survey of patient demographics and outcomes at seven English PICUs. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 4(1&2): 17–27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chaudhry, K. and Pereira, S.M. (2009) A comparison of NHS and private psychiatric intensive care units: Unit and patient characteristics. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 5(1): 5–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cresswell, J., Beavon, M. and Glover, N. (2009) Accreditation for inpatient mental health services: Standards for psychiatric intensive care units (PICUs). 1st edition. London: Royal College Psychiatrists, Pub. No. CRTU078.Google Scholar
Department of Health (2002) Mental Health Policy Implementation Guide for National Minimum Standards for General Adult Services in Psychiatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) and Low Secure Environments. London: Department of Health.Google Scholar
Department of Health (2003) Mainstreaming Gender and Women’s Mental Health. Implementation guide. London: Department of Health.Google Scholar
Department of Health (2008) Refocusing the Care Programme Approach: Policy and positive practice guidance. London: Department of Health.Google Scholar
Dye, S., Johnston, A. and Pereira, S. (2005) The national psychiatric intensive care governance network 2004–5. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 1(2): 97–104.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, S., Beer, M.D. and Paton, C. (1999) Good practice issues in psychiatric intensive-care units: Findings from a national survey. Psychiatric Bulletin. 23: 397–400.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, S.M., Chaudhry, K., Pietromartire, S., Dale, C. and Halliwell, J. (2005a) Design in psychiatric intensive care units: Problems and issues. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 1(2): 70–76.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, S.M., Sarsam, M., Bhui, K. and Paton, C. (2005b) The London Survey of Psychiatric Intensive Care Units: Service provision and operational characteristics of National Health Service units. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 1(1): 7–15.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, S., Dawson, P. and Sarsam, M. (2006a) The National Survey of PICU and low secure services: 2. Patient characteristics. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 2(1): 7–12.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pereira, S., Dawson, P. and Sarsam, M. (2006b) The National Survey of PICU and low secure services: 2. Unit characteristics. Journal of Psychiatric Intensive Care. 2(1): 13–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
SPSS (2005) SPSS for Windows, version 14.0. Lead technologies, Inc.Google Scholar
Turner, T. (2008) The interface with general psychiatric services. In: Beer, M.D., Pereira, S., Paton, C. (eds). Psychiatric Intensive Care. Cambridge University Press, pp. 220–228.Google Scholar