- Bibtex: @sinclair2011
- Bibliography: Sinclair, J. M. A., Gray, A., Rivero-Arias, O., Saunders, K. E. A., & Hawton, K. (2011). Healthcare and social services resource use and costs of self-harm patients. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 46(4), 263–271. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-010-0183-5
Example citation
The majority of health-care costs in the year after self-harm are due to inpatient psychiatric care
My notes
- There’s a Pareto Principle pattern among self-harm patients, where individuals with five or more episodes have the highest levels of resource costs.
- 94% self-poisoning in the index event
- n = 78
- Their resource use categories include primary/outpatient/inpatient care as well as emergency department visits, medication, and social service resources. No self-report.
- Three groups: single episode, 2-4 episodes, 5+ episodes
- 66% of the total costs in the first year after self-harm were inpatient psychiatric care (see pie chart).
- There were small differences over time between the single episode and 2-4 episodes groups, but much more costs for the 5+ episodes group (see line chart).
Abstract
Patients who have self-harmed have increased morbidity across a wide range of health outcomes, but there is no evidence on their pattern of health and social service use, and its relationship with repetition of self-harm. Previous studies have shown that resource use and costs in the short-term hospital management of self-harm is associated with certain patient and service characteristics but their impact in the longer term has not been demonstrated. The aim of this study is to test the association between changing levels of costs of health and social care with further episodes of self-harm and to identify the clinical and social factors associated with this. PDF: sinclair_2011_healthcare_and_social_services_resource_use_and_costs_of_self-harm_patients.pdf