PATIENTS’ EXPERIENCES OF HIGH SECURE HOSPITAL READMISSION
Research type
Research Study
Full title
PATIENTS’ EXPERIENCES OF HIGH SECURE HOSPITAL READMISSION FOLLOWING UNSUCCESSFUL TRIAL LEAVE
IRAS ID
219825
Contact name
Alice Conlin
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Nottingham
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 7 months, 0 days
Research summary
High secure psychiatric hospitals admit patients suffering from a mental disorder, deemed to pose a grave risk to the public. They aim to reduce patients’ risk of harm, treat mental disorder and facilitate patients’ recovery. They cost over £300,000 per person annually. There are economic, legal and humanitarian reasons patients should be progressed from high secure hospitals as soon as possible. For most high secure hospital patients, the next step in their treatment pathway entails transferring to a medium secure hospital. This involves ‘trial leave’, in which patients are transferred to the medium secure hospital for a period (usually six months). During this time, patients remain formally under the care of their high secure responsible clinician and if problems arise, patients can be readmitted to the high secure hospital without referral. Otherwise, patients are discharged to the medium secure hospital's care.
There are inherent difficulties in this transition process and 20% of patients fail trial leave. The cost of failed trial leave is high, in terms of the impact of resulting challenging behaviour on staff and other patients, the psychological impact on the individual, and financially.
This study aims to gather a richer understanding of patients’ experiences of readmission to a high secure hospital, following unsuccessful trial leave to a medium secure hospital. Five male patients, who have been readmitted to high secure hospital over the last five years, will be interviewed to investigate their experiences of their unsuccessful trial leave, exploring their experiences before, during and after readmission.
The themes that emerge may help to improve understanding of the factors underlying trial leave failure, and thus help to identify ways to improve the transition process and better support the patients and staff involved.REC name
East Midlands - Leicester South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/EM/0273
Date of REC Opinion
17 Oct 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion