BACKGROUND The physical environment is presumed to have an effect on aggression and also on the use of seclusion on psychiatric wards. Multicentre studies that include a broad variety of design features found on psychiatric wards and that control for patient, staff and general ward characteristics are scarce. AIMS To explore the effect of design features on the risk of being secluded, the num...

The present study aimed at investigating the relationship between environmental and individual factors and Stress of Conscience among nursing staff in psychiatric in-patient care. A questionnaire involving six different instruments measuring Stress of Conscience, the ward atmosphere, the psychosocial work environment, Perceived Stress, Moral Sensitivity, and Mastery was answered by 93 nursing s...

By a custom established at some unknown date by the now defunct Boards of Guardians, Observation Wards occupy a more important place in the system for dealing with mental patients in London than they do in many parts of England. As most readers are aware, there are two main channels for entering mental hospitals as a certified mental patient. First, the Relieving Officer can arrange for a visit...

On entering psychiatry from general hospital posts, I found that part of my work lay in the wards for feeble, elderly patients. I felt it might be of interest to study these patients, and to see if they had all been admitted as young psychotics and grown old in hospital, or whether they had been admitted as elderly people. Also I wondered how many of them really needed mental hospital care, and...

BACKGROUND Patient falls and injuries during hospitalization is a good quality indicator of safety of inpatients. Data on inpatients falls are deficient in Egyptian hospitals. Ain Shams university hospitals do not have any recording system for falls. AIM This study aimed at estimating the incidence density of falls and describing pattern and risk factors contributing to falls in Ain shams uni...

To enable relatives and friends of psychiatric patients in a 30-bed acute admission ward to meet the staff team together a relatives and friends group was initiated. The group was intended to provide a forum for questions about the patients' illness and treatment; allow feelings, such as anger and anxiety, about the patient's illness to be expressed; and enable relatives and friends to share th...

BACKGROUND Hospital care is still an integral part of mental healthcare services. But the impact of ward design on treatment outcomes is unclear. AIMS To review the effects of ward design on patient outcomes and patient and staff well-being. METHOD A systematic review of literature was carried out on Medline, Embase and PsycINFO. Papers on psychogeriatric and child and adolescent wards were...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Psychiatric disorders account for an increasing number of pediatric hospitalizations. Due to lack of psychiatric beds, patients on involuntary psychiatric holds may be admitted to medical units. Our objectives were to evaluate the rate of admission of psychiatric patients to a medical unit, psychiatric care provided, and estimated cost of care. METHODS The study invo...