Visits to the emergency department for psychiatric conditions are on the rise among children and adolescents in the U.S., according to a study published in Pediatrics.
Researchers used ED data from the 2011–15 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, a national survey of ED visits. They identified ED visits for psychiatric purposes, and they used U.S. Census Bureau data to examine population rates.
Researchers found there was a 28 percent overall increase in psychiatric ED visits, from 31.3 visits per 1,000 youth in 2011 to 40.2 visits per 1,000 youth in 2015. Fifty-four percent of adolescents experienced increases in psychiatric ED visits per 1,000 youth. Additionally, they observed a 2.5-fold increase in suicide-related visits among adolescents.
They also found African American patients (53 percent) and Hispanic patients (91 percent) saw the largest increases in psychiatric ED visits per 1,000 youth.
Only 16 percent of patients were seen by a mental health professional during their visit, the study shows.