Background Psychiatric EDs manage high volumes of patients who often face barriers to medication access, limited understanding of discharge instructions, and difficulty securing timely outpatient follow-up. Structured early outreach has shown promise in improving these transitions. This quality improvement initiative evaluated a 72-hour nurse-led telephone follow-up program for patients discharged from a psychiatric service within an ED. Methods All patients discharged over the study period were eligible for a structured telephone call within 72 hours. The call assessed medication pickup, medication adherence, follow-up appointment status, transportation needs, and satisfaction with both emergency care and the follow-up call. Diagnoses were extracted from clinician documentation. Demographic characteristics and patient-reported needs were summarized. Outcomes included call reach rate, patient-reported understanding of discharge instructions, medication-related behaviors, and follow-up completion. Results A total of 69 patients met the inclusion criteria, with a mean age of 35.3 years. The most common diagnoses were major depressive disorder with suicidal ideation, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. The nurse navigator successfully contacted 37.7% of discharged patients. Among reached patients, half reported taking their medications, and over two-thirds had a scheduled follow-up appointment. Transportation barriers were uncommon. Patient satisfaction with psychiatric emergency care averaged 4.45 on a five-point scale, and satisfaction with the follow-up call averaged 4.95. Patients commonly sought clarification regarding medications, follow-up appointments, and transportation resources. Conclusion Early nurse navigator-led telephone follow-up after discharge from psychiatric emergency care demonstrated strong patient engagement and high satisfaction. The calls created opportunities to reinforce discharge instructions, support medication use, and assist with follow-up planning. These findings suggest that early nurse-led contact can highlight actionable barriers and support safer care transitions following psychiatric emergency discharge.
Patel et al. (Sun,) studied this question.