Difficult Capacity Cases-The Experience of Liaison Psychiatrists. An Interview Study Across Three Jurisdictions.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Assessment of capacity for treatment and discharge decisions is common in the general hospital. Liaison psychiatrists are often asked to support the treating medical or surgical team in difficult capacity assessments. However, empirical research on identification and resolution of difficult capacity cases is limited. Some studies have identified certain patient, decisional, and interpersonal factors which cause difficulty, but no study has explored how these issues are resolved in practice. Our study therefore aimed to describe how experienced liaison psychiatrists identify and resolve difficult capacity cases in a general hospital setting.

Methods

We carried out semi-structured interviews with 26 liaison psychiatrists from England, Scotland, and New Zealand, on t

SUBMITTER: Kane NB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9309683 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature