Patient advocacy presents evaluations of restrictions on freedom of movement. There is a worrying trend among young people.
Vienna (OTS) – On average, 770 patients per day are admitted to Austria’s psychiatric wards against or without their will. This happens when doctors assess that there is a danger to those affected or to other people. The patient advocacy group at Agency Network supports and represents the people accommodated directly in the hospital.
In 2023, 25,254 placements against or without the patients’ will were reported in the representative network’s area of responsibility (all of Austria except Vorarlberg). This roughly corresponds to the number from the previous year.
In 2023, around 34 percent of patients were affected by “further restrictions on freedom of movement” (e.g. fixation with belts to the bed, locked hospital rooms) during the course of their accommodation. This value has risen sharply since the start of the Covid pandemic and has not fallen since then.
For the first time, comparative figures for belt fixations
„We see large regional differences in the restriction rate: in Vienna and Burgenland there are around twice as many restrictions as in the western federal states of Tyrol and Salzburg
“, explains Bernhard Rappert, head of the patient advocacy department at representation network.
„In 2023, for the first time, we were able to evaluate in detail at the federal state level how many patients are restrained to the bed with belts during their psychiatric stay
“, says Rappert. Across Austria, 72 people per 100,000 inhabitants were affected by such an acute measure. In Carinthia and Styria, with 103 and 88 patients respectively, there are significantly more than, for example, in Lower Austria (48) or Burgenland (25). .
“The regional differences are an indication of different approaches and attitudes towards the issue of coercion. We hope that our input from psychiatric departments will be used to find out why some locations are able to manage with less coercive measures
“, so Rappert.
On average, patients across Austria stay accommodated for 11.3 days. However, in recent years they have been released more and more quickly. This trend has continued in 2023. After 5 days, 56.6% of the accommodations were lifted.
Data shows gap in care for children and young people
There is a worrying trend among children and young people: the number of placements of minors has risen massively by almost 20% to 2,673 since the Covid pandemic. At the same time, the average length of accommodation is falling – and in some cases very significantly. Vienna in particular stands out in the evaluations. While the length of stay of children and young people there fell from 12.1 days (2022) to 7.4 days (2023) in just one year, the proportion of those young patients who stayed there five times or even more during the course of a calendar year has increased were housed increased by almost 27%.
„These worrying figures also correspond to our impression from representation practice: many young people leave the hospital not sufficiently stabilized because there are no beds and staff for them. They often return to a care environment that is also overloaded, meaning that they have to be admitted again and again. In this way, young people are deprived of the opportunity to emerge stronger from a psychological crisis situation
“Rappert describes the situation.
The legislature has also recognized the problem and, in the amendment to the Accommodation Act, which has been in force since July 2023, stipulates that every discharge must be well prepared with the patient and their social environment in order to ensure appropriate continued care. This requires an expansion of extramural care throughout Austria.
„We therefore very much welcome the fact that the City of Vienna is expanding outpatient and outreach services (‘home treatment’). Nevertheless, for acute situations, such as when someone has suicidal thoughts, there must be enough inpatient places available for as long as the sick person needs them
“, demands Rappert.
Questions & Contact:
Ms. Karina Lokosek, BA
Representation network – public relations
+43 676 83308 8173
carina. locos@vertretungsnetz.at
www.vertretungsnetz.at