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Psychiatric Emergencies of Asylum Seekers; Descriptive Analysis and Comparison with Immigrants of Warranted Residence

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  • Georgios Schoretsanitis

    (University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland
    Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, and JARA–Translational Brain Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, 52074 Aachen, Germany)

  • Sarah Eisenhardt

    (University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland)

  • Meret E. Ricklin

    (Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland)

  • David S. Srivastava

    (Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland)

  • Sebastian Walther

    (University Hospital of Psychiatry, 3008 Bern, Switzerland)

  • Aristomenis Exadaktylos

    (Department of Emergency Medicine, Inselspital, University Hospital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, 3010 Bern, Switzerland)

Abstract

Background: The aim of our study was to assess utilization patterns of psychiatric services by asylum seekers. Methods: We included 119 adults who presented themselves at the University Emergency Department between 1 March 2012 and 1 January 2017 for psychiatric consultation. Descriptive data were compared with a control group of non-Swiss individuals with warranted residence permits using Mann-Whitney- U and chi square (χ 2 ) tests. Results: Patients were mainly single, male, residing in reception centers, and presented themselves most frequently due to suicidal ideation. Almost 60% of the patients were assigned to inpatient treatments, with 28 involuntary cases. Compared to the control group, asylum seekers were younger and more often men ( p < 0.001 for both). Further, they less often had family in Switzerland (χ 2 = 9.91, p = 0.007). The proportion of patients coming in as walk-ins was significantly higher in the control group than in asylum seekers (χ 2 = 37.0, p < 0.001). Asylum seekers were more frequently referred due to suicidal ideation and aggressive behavior than participants in the control group (χ 2 = 80.07, p < 0.001). Diagnoses for asylum seekers infrequently included mood, as they often reported stress-related disorders (χ 2 = 19.6, p = 0.021) and they were infrequently released home (χ 2 = 9.19, p = 0.027). Conclusion: Asylum seekers more frequently demonstrated severe symptoms such as suicidal ideation and aggressive behavior and they were mainly treated as inpatients, potentially due to minimal social resources.

Suggested Citation

  • Georgios Schoretsanitis & Sarah Eisenhardt & Meret E. Ricklin & David S. Srivastava & Sebastian Walther & Aristomenis Exadaktylos, 2018. "Psychiatric Emergencies of Asylum Seekers; Descriptive Analysis and Comparison with Immigrants of Warranted Residence," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-10, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:7:p:1300-:d:153701
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Katrina Witt & Richard van Dorn & Seena Fazel, 2013. "Risk Factors for Violence in Psychosis: Systematic Review and Meta-Regression Analysis of 110 Studies," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 8(2), pages 1-15, February.
    2. Kenneth Carswell & Pennie Blackburn & Chris Barker, 2011. "The Relationship Between Trauma, Post-Migration Problems and the Psychological Well-Being of Refugees and Asylum Seekers," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 57(2), pages 107-119, March.
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    1. Osnat Keidar & David S. Srivastava & Emmanouil Pikoulis & Aristomenis K. Exadaktylos, 2019. "Health of Refugees and Migrants—Where Do We Stand and What Directions Should We Take?," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(8), pages 1-8, April.
    2. Georgios Schoretsanitis & Dinesh Bhugra & Sarah Eisenhardt & Meret E. Ricklin & David S. Srivastava & Aristomenis Exadaktylos & Sebastian Walther, 2018. "Upon Rejection: Psychiatric Emergencies of Failed Asylum Seekers," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(7), pages 1-9, July.

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