Patients' and referring doctors' perceptions of treatment on an in-patient neuropsychiatry/epilepsy unit: a study of three cohorts

Three cohorts of patients, discharged within three, 12-month periods from a tertiary referral Neuropsychiatry/Epilepsy Unit, were asked whether they felt their condition had improved as a result of their admission, how they valued the admission and how easy they had found the admission to manage. They were also asked about their psychological and psychosocial state. For the first cohort a longer admission was more greatly valued and was associated with a better self-perceived outcome, and for the second cohort with the manageability of the admission. Replies to questionnaires sent to the referring doctors of two of the three cohorts of patients indicated that, in addition to their being satisfied with the service, there was a positive correlation between their ratings of patients' improvement and those ratings offered by the patients themselves. Issues relating to length and purpose of admissions, finances and the distribution of assessment and treatment of patients across different services are discussed in the light of the findings.