Evaluating emergency psychiatry consultation services: Perspectives from emergency medicine clinicians

Emergency department (ED) presentations for mental health symptoms are common. Embedding psychiatry consultation services into the ED can enhance interdisciplinary care. The primary aim of this study was to begin understanding what emergency medicine (EM) clinicians value in an emergency psychiatry consultation.

A questionnaire containing a demographics section followed by a matrix where respondents rated how important 18 parameters are in determining satisfaction with an emergency psychiatry consultation using a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = not at all important and 5 = very important) was electronically distributed to EM clinicians. Data were analyzed using frequencies and descriptive statistics. Fisher's exact test was used for group comparisons.

The questionnaire was completed by 63 EM clinicians: 34 EM attending physicians (54.0%), 22 EM resident physicians (34.9%), and seven EM advanced practice practitioners (11.1%). Participants rated the following three parameters highest: "consultant communicates verbally with the team in addition to placing notes in the chart" (mean = 4.71), "consultant has practical and helpful suggestions for medical staff" (mean = 4.67), and "consultant understands the situation and the core question being asked" (mean = 4.62).

EM clinicians valued emergency psychiatry consultant communication and clinical recommendations the most. To the authors' knowledge, this study represents the first dedicated effort to examine emergency psychiatry consultation services and provides guidance for their optimization. Future research may extend this work beyond the study institution to EDs with differing locations, consultation service structures, and available mental health resources.