Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Eliminating The Wait For Mental Health Services

  • Brief Report
  • Published:
The Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Timely access to mental health services is critical to successful treatment of adults with severe and persistent mental illness, and timeliness is a key quality indicator in calls for improvement to the health care system. Waiting weeks for a psychiatric appointment results in increased psychiatric hospitalizations, decompensation, and risk for suicide. However, many community mental health administrators assume that waiting lists for services are inevitable given the high demand for services. The present study evaluates the successful efforts of a large urban community mental health center to eliminate the wait for psychiatric services in an adult outpatient setting. Through systematic changes in the service delivery system, the wait time for a psychiatric appointment was reduced from 13 days to 0 days, and the no-show rate dropped from 52 to 18%. Furthermore, these changes were associated with reduced psychiatric hospitalizations and improved staff morale and teamwork. The change processes implemented can be successfully applied to other systems problems confronting mental health agencies.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Health Care Industry. Quality First: Better Health Care for All Americans. Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office;1998.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Committee on the Quality of Healthcare in America, Institute of Medicine. Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. Washington, DC: National Academies Press;2004.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. Treatment demand exceeds availability. Substance Abuse in Brief. September 1999:1–4.

  4. Sturm R, Sherbourne CD. Are barriers to mental health and substance abuse care still rising? Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research. 2001;28(1):81–88.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Soumerai SB, McLaughlin TJ, Ross-Degnan D, et al. Effects of limiting Medicaid drug-reimbursement benefits on the use of psychotropic agents and acute mental health services by patients with schizophrenia. New England Journal of Medicine. 1994;331(10):650–655.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  6. North CS, Smith EM. A systematic study of mental health services utilization by homeless men and women. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology. 1993;28(2):77–83.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Staudt MM. Helping children access and use services: A review. Journal of Child and Family Studies. 2003;12(1):49–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. May RJ. Effects of waiting for clinical services on attrition, problem resolution, satisfaction, attitudes toward psychotherapy, and treatment outcome: A review of the literature. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice. 1991;72(3):209–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Folkins C, Hersch P, Dahlen D. Waiting time and no-show rate in a community mental health center. American Journal of Community Psychology. 1980;8(1):121–123.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Grunebaum M, Luber P, Callahan M, et al. Predictors of missed appointments for psychiatric consultations in a primary care clinic. Psychiatric Services. 1996;47(8):848–852.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Orme DR, Boswell D. The pre-intake drop-out at a community mental health center. Community Mental Health Journal. 1991;27(5):375–379.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Murray M, Berwick DM. Advanced access: Reducing waiting and delays in primary care. Journal of the American Medical Association. 2003;289(8):1035–1040.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Murray M, Tantau C. Same-day appointments: Exploding the access paradigm. Family Practice Management. 2000;7:45–50.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, Murray & Tantau, Duane McWaine, M.D., Medical Director, Kita Curry, Ph.D., President/CEO, and all the other staff at Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center Adult Outpatient Program, who helped us to transform a system.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. General Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, 4650 Sunset Blvd., MS#53, Los Angeles, CA, 90027, USA

    Marian E. Williams PhD

  2. Didi Hirsch Community Mental Health Center, 4760 S. Sepulveda Boulevard, Culver City, CA, 90230, USA

    James Latta LCSW

  3. Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, 4650 W Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Persila Conversano PsyD

Authors
  1. Marian E. Williams PhD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. James Latta LCSW
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Persila Conversano PsyD
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marian E. Williams PhD.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Williams, M.E., Latta, J. & Conversano, P. Eliminating The Wait For Mental Health Services. J Behav Health Serv Res 35, 107–114 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-007-9091-1

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11414-007-9091-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation