A 2-year prospective study of patients from Castle Peak Hospital discharged to the first long-stay care home in Hong Kong

Abstract

Investigated the cost-effectiveness of the first psychiatric long-stay care home in Hong Kong, which opened in 1990. This was a prospective cohort study of the first 43 patients (aged 21-79 yrs) discharged to the long-stay care home from Castle Peak Hospital, who were followed-up for 2 years. Patients had significantly improved social and community skills while remaining behaviourally and symptomatically stable. The long-stay care home provided a less restrictive environment than Castle Peak Hospital, and patients' satisfaction was high. The recurring costs for the long-stay care home were lower than for the hospital. The only statistically significant adverse finding was deterioration in personal health care skills 2 years after leaving the medical setting. This study provides the first scientific evidence in Hong Kong to show that the long-stay care home is a cost-effective means of successfully rehabilitating a group of long-stay mental hospital inpatients who do not qualify for halfway houses but require only minimal nursing care (less than 2.5 hours per week). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)