Involuntary Psychiatric Holds in Preadolescent Children

Little is known about the use of involuntary psychiatric holds in preadolescent children. The primary objective was to characterize patients under the age of 10 years on involuntary psychiatric holds.

This was a two-year retrospective study from April 2013 - April 2015 in one urban pediatric emergency department (ED). Subjects were all children under the age of 10 years who were on an involuntary psychiatric hold at any point during their ED visit. We collected demographic data including age, gender, ethnicity and details about living situation, child protective services involvement and prior mental health treatment, as well as ED disposition.

There were 308 visits by 265 patients in a two-year period. Ninety percent of involuntary psychiatric holds were initiated in the prehospital setting. The following were common characteristics: male (75%), in custody of child protective services (23%), child protective services involvement (42%), and a prior psychiatric hospitalization (32%). Fifty-six percent of visits resulted in discharge from the ED, 42% in transfer to a psychiatric hospital and 1% in admission to the pediatric medical ward. Median length of stay was 4.7 hours for discharged patients and 11.7 hours for patients transferred to psychiatric hospitals.

To our knowledge, this study presents the first characterization of preadolescent children on involuntary psychiatric holds. Ideally, mental health screening and services could be initiated in children with similar high-risk characteristics before escalation results in placement of an involuntary psychiatric hold. Furthermore, given that many patients were discharged from the ED, the current pattern of utilization of involuntary psychiatric holds in young children should be reconsidered.