City Research Online

Abstract

Background: Serious untoward incidents, or sentinel events (suicide, homicide, suicide attempt, serious assault and elopement of high risk patients) occur from time to time in association with acute psychiatric inpatient wards.

Aim: To discover the impact of serious untoward incidents on inpatient wards.

Method: Doctors, nurses and occupational therapists at three hospitals were interviewed about these events and their impact on their wards.

Findings: Staff reported feelings of shock, depression, demoralisation, upset, loss, and grief, followed by ruminations, guilt and anxiety. Levels of containment increased, as did the focus on risk assessment. Processing of the emotional impact was hindered by the pace of ward life, a lack of external support, and management investigations. Patient responses were largely ignored. A few staff responded negatively, hindering service improvements.

Conclusions: Much more attention needs to be given to the needs of the patient group following incidents. Substantial planning, organisation and investment are required to properly prepare for such events and manage their outcome. Without this planning and action, acute inpatient work has the capacity to be damaging to staff.

Publication Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is the accepted version of the following article: Bowers, L., Simpson, A., Eyres, S., Nijman, H., Hall, C., Grange, A. and Phillips, L. (2006), Serious untoward incidents and their aftermath in acute inpatient psychiatry: The Tompkins Acute Ward Study. International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 15: 226–234, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1447-0349.2006.00428.x
Publisher Keywords:	Self-Injurious Behaviour, Homicide, Suicide, Violence, Absconding
Subjects:	R Medicine > R Medicine (General) R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC0321 Neuroscience. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry
Departments:	School of Health & Psychological Sciences
Related URLs:	Author
SWORD Depositor:	Symplectic Administrator

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