Diagnosis of the state of implementation of mental health hospitalization units in general hospitals in the city of Córdoba. Preliminary results

Abstract

In Argentina, mental health policies and National Law N° 26657 (art. 28) sustain that hospitalizations must be done in general hospitals (GH). Therefore, hospitals must count with necessary resources. Thus, reports and studies performed in our country show lack of availability in hospitalization beds for these health problems and a deficit in professional resources for Mental Health (MH) urgent care in general hospitals. The objective of this study was to perform a diagnosis of situation of the state of implementation of the mental health (psychiatric) hospitalization units in general hospitals in the city of Córdoba.

An exploratory study, descriptive of qualitative methodology was performed. The gathering of data was done by Instrument of Evaluation for Mental Health System (IEMS-OMS 2.1) and interviews in depth to managers/heads of Service of GH in the period 2021-2022. Seven HGs were surveyed in the city of Cordoba. The variables analyzed were: units/hospitalization beds, urgent care, interdisciplinary teams, reasons of hospitalization and others.

Instrument (IEMS-OMS-2.1) showed that 2/7 GHs counted with unit/bed hospitalization, and they were closed during COVID19 Pandemic. All of them, had hospitalizations, most of them in rooms in the general hospital wards, causing difficulties. The most frequent reasons of hospitalization were suicide attempts, addictions, psychotic episodes, and psychomotor excitement, and they have resources for therapeutic treatment. Involuntary hospitalizations were done. Regarding mental health urgent care, in 6/7 are interdisciplinary and passive.

From the in-depth interviews, it was inferred that they do not have adequate spaces for mental health emergencies, which generates risk for people attending for counseling, as much as for professionals. Factors which difficult implementations of units of hospitalization were identified: deficit of professional resources and buildings, low training in MH to professionals of GH and lack of proposals to mend these aspects, which were exacerbated during this Pandemic.

In conclusion, difficulties in implementation of units/beds of hospitalization in GH were observed exacerbated during the Pandemic. Main reasons of hospital admissions were related to health situations that place people´s lives at risk.