Patients over the age of 18 with major depression are not receiving timely access to community mental health treatment following discharge from their psychiatric hospitalization on GEN B. Waiting a long time for support services in the community can cause patient depression to worsen and lead to patients seeking services in crisis. There is also a higher risk of suicide during the two weeks post-psychiatric hospitalization.
The aim of this IDEAS project was by February 28, 2018, 75% of patients discharged from the Gen B adult inpatient unit at the Brampton Civic Hospital (BCH), William Osler Health System, with major depression (MDD) will be offered a scheduled follow-up appointment with a health care provider within 7 days.