Preferences and Barriers to Care Following Psychiatric Hospitalization at Two Veterans Affairs Medical Centers: A Mixed Methods Study. J Behav Health Serv Res 2016 Jan;43(1):88-103
Date
03/18/2015Pubmed ID
25779387DOI
10.1007/s11414-015-9460-0Scopus ID
2-s2.0-84924940102 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 11 CitationsAbstract
Patient preferences and barriers to care may impact receipt of adequate mental health treatment following psychiatric hospitalization and could inform quality improvement initiatives. This study assessed preferences for a broad range of post-hospital services and barriers to counseling by surveying 291 patients and interviewing 25 patients who had recently been discharged from an inpatient psychiatric stay at one of the two Veterans Affairs Medical Centers. Individual counseling was the most frequently reported service that survey respondents preferred, but did not receive; whereas, open-ended survey responses and interviews also identified telephone follow-up "check-in" calls as a frequently preferred service. Difficulty with transportation was the most commonly cited barrier to counseling among survey respondents and in interviews; however, patients strongly preferred in-person counseling to telephone or internet-video alternatives. Increasing support from family and support from an individual Veteran peer were also perceived to be helpful in the majority of survey respondents.
Author List
Pfeiffer PN, Bowersox N, Birgenheir D, Burgess J, Forman J, Valenstein MAuthor
Denis Birgenheir PhD Assistant Professor in the Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdultAged
Counseling
Female
Health Care Surveys
Health Services Accessibility
Hospitalization
Humans
Male
Mental Disorders
Middle Aged
Patient Preference
United States
United States Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans
