Predictors of hospitalization two years after treatment for first-episode psychosis

OBJECTIVE This study examined the predictors of inpatient hospital admission after early intervention for psychosis services (EIPS) treatment. Specifically, the study examined the sociodemographic and clinical factors that were associated with hospital admissions in the two years after discharge from EIPS. METHODS The characteristics of 231 patients enrolled in an EIPS program in Christchurch, New Zealand, between 2000 and 2005 were examined. Information about post-EIPS hospital admissions was obtained from the New Zealand Health Information Service. Poisson regression models were used to estimate bivariate and multivariate associations between number of post-EIPS hospital admissions and a range of predictors, including hospitalization history. RESULTS A majority of patients (78%) were hospitalized before or during EIPS treatment, and 29% were hospitalized after the program. Older age, Māori ethnicity, a domestic partnership at referral, lower Global Assessment of Functioning scores, and hospitalization before and during treatment were significant predictors of the number of post-EIPS hospitalizations. CONCLUSIONS The results of the study suggest that the number of hospital admissions after participation in the EIPS program may be reduced by addressing issues related to the cultural appropriateness of treatment, engagement with partners and families, and overall adjustment and functioning and by efforts to limit hospitalization before and during EIPS treatment.