Study of N.H. hospitals shows patients sometimes wait for days for psychiatric care

CONCORD – Because of a shortage of beds at the state hospital, and few other options, people who go to emergency rooms seeking psychiatric help are forced to often wait for days at a steep cost, according to a report released Thursday. The Foundation for Healthy Communities conducted a study from October through December of 15 of the state’s 26 hospitals with emergency departments. The study involved 575 patients of varying ages and income levels who had gone to the emergency rooms seeking psychiatric treatment. Nashua’s two hospitals – Southern New Hampshire Medical Center and St. Joseph Hospital – declined to participate in the study, according to its author, Shawn LaFrance, executive director of the foundation. Neither hospital was able to provide a response to the study for this story despite being contacted Friday morning. Among the findings: Nearly one in three patients seeking mental health treatment waited more than 24 hours in a hospital emergency department, with an average wait among this group of 2.5 days. More than half of all patients recommended for an involuntary emergency admission for psychiatric care waited more than 24 hours in a hospital emergency department. More than three out of four patients – 449 of the 575 – required constant observation while waiting in the emergency department and almost one half of the patients required special security. Many of the same problems were uncovered in a 2008 study. However, little progress was made in the last four years, LaFrance said. People involved in mental health care were hearing anecdotes about long waits and lack of care for people seeking mental health treatment, and it seemed the problem was worsening, LaFrance said. The study was an effort to support the anecdotes with statistical evidence, he said. “We felt that by documenting it over a period of time, we could bring attention to the seriousness of the situation,” LaFrance said. As for the anecdotal evidence, one hospital emergency department cited the case of a woman brought there by police as a possible suicide risk.