A profile of adult acute admissions to Lentegeur psychiatric hospital, South Africa

ABSTRACT

Background: The Western Cape province has the highest documented lifetime prevalence of common mental disorders in South Africa. To ensure the efficient, equitable and effective distribution of current resources, there is a need to determine the profile of patients requiring psychiatric admission.Aim: To describe patients admitted to the acute adult admissions unit at Lentegeur Hospital.Setting: Lentegeur Psychiatric Hospital is situated in Mitchells Plain, Cape Town, and serves about 1 million people from nearby urban and rural areas.Methods: This retrospective study involved an audit of all patients (18­60 years of age) admitted between 01 January 2016 and 30 June 2016. The clinical records of 573 adult patients were examined.Results: The median age of the cohort was 29 years. Most patients (63%) were educated to the secondary level. Only 12% of the patients were employed, and 37% received disability grants. More than 90% of the patients presented with psychotic symptoms. Of these, 28% presented with a first-episode of psychosis. Of all patients, 20% were referred with manic symptoms and 7% with depressive symptoms. Many patients (62%) used substances concurrently in the period leading up to admission. Significantly more males (73%) used substances compared to females (38%). Cannabis was the most widely used substance (51%), followed by methamphetamine (36%). Recent violent behaviour contributed to 37% of the current admissions. A total of 70 patients (13%) tested positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and 49 (9%) tested positive for syphilis.Conclusion: Substance use and a history of violence contributed to admissions in this population