Effectiveness of Continuity-of-Care Programs to reduce time in hospital in persons with schizophrenia

AIMS: To assess the impact of the Continuity-of-Care Program (CCP; a clinical case management model) on hospital use of persons with schizophrenia in three Community Mental Health Services in Madrid (Spain). METHODS: Using data provided by the Psychiatric Case Register, we analyzed the use of hospitalization in 250 individuals before and after the date of inclusion in this program. RESULTS: During the first year after launching the program, there was a 40-69% reduction in the number of admissions, length of each hospital stay, proportion of admitted patients, total number of days in-hospital, proportion of patients visiting the emergency room, and emergency room visits. This drop was maintained over the subsequent 3 years of program functioning. CONCLUSIONS: These results encourage the development and implementation of such programs, even though more studies evaluating the effectiveness of these programs for other endpoints are needed.