Length of stay on admission and clinical outcomes among patients with mental disorders at A Tertiary Hospital, in northwest Nigeria: An eight-year retrospective study

Abstract

Background: There is limited information available about the Length of Stay (LOS) on admissions among persons with mental disorders and the associated factors in our environment. Understanding these patterns could provide valuable insights into the efficiency and quality of inpatient care.

Aim: To the determine the length of Stay (LOS) and clinical outcomes among inpatients with mental disorders at Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto, Nigeria

Materials and Methods: An eight-year retrospective study analyzed data from 434 patients admitted to the psychiatry ward of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, using SPSS software version 25 to analyze sociodemographic and clinical information, with statistical significance determined by Chi-squared and Fisher's exact tests at a 5% level of significance.

Results: The mean length of stay was 15.8 days (SD ± 12.2). Approximately 52.6% of patients were hospitalized for less than two weeks. Notably, 85.8% of patients remained until discharge, and 31.1% of admissions were diagnosed with affective disorders. There was a statistically significant association between the length of stay (LOS) and the outcome among in patients admitted (P= 0.029).

Conclusion: Our study found an association between length of stay (LOS) and patient outcomes, emphasizing the importance of early psychiatric assessments for inpatients to reduce mortality and prolonged care. It also highlights the need to inform caregivers about expected admission durations.