[Consensus document: a model of integrated management of patients with psycomotor agitation]

Psychomotor agitation (PMA) is a heterogeneous clinical syndrome associated with a widenumber of pathological conditions. The currently available recommendations and guidelines on PMA correct assessment and management are significantly dishomogeneous and suffer from a lack of standardization, especially regarding pharmacological interventions. Based on this deficiency, and on multidisciplinary nature of PMA, that includes factors shared by different health professionals other than pharmacoeconomic and risk management aspects, we started a project aimed to elaborate a shared model of integrated management for PMA patients. The model, developed by a scientific board and a multidisciplinary panel using the consensus Delphi-RAND method, aims to give indications of good clinical practice for the management of these patients. The present document reports the results of this consensus process, whose main principles are the centrality of the patient, as an active and collaborating subject, the importance of prompt and not coercive interventions able to block the escalation to violence and to allow a correct diagnostic and therapeutic workup, the appropriate use of pharmacological interventions based on the severity of symptoms and the importance of an integrated and harmonized approach by the different professionals involved in PMA management.