(Press-News.org) In the first North American study to examine population rates of Emergency Department (ED) use for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), researchers from the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) found 55 per cent of adults with IDD and mental illness visited the ED at least once in a 2 year period and 15.6 per cent visited at least 5 times.
"A lot of attention has been paid to emergency department use in adults with mental health issues. Our study shows that those with an intellectual or developmental disability such as Down Syndrome or autism, on top of their mental health issue are even more likely to use the Emergency Department, and that they use it more often. We need to pay more attention to how we serve this vulnerable group both in and out of the hospital," says lead author Yona Lunsky, Clinician Scientist at CAMH and Adjunct Scientist at ICES.
The study of 43,549 adults with IDD done in Ontario between date April 1, 2007 and date March 31, 2009 found:
• Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are more likely to use an ED than those without IDD
• Adults with IDD and psychiatric disorder ("dual diagnosis") are more likely to use the ED than those with IDD and no psychiatric disorder
• 44 per cent of those with IDD visited an ED at least once in a 2 year period and 8.5 per cent visited at least 5 times
• 55 per cent of those with IDD and mental illness visited ED at least once in a 2 year period and 15.6 per cent visited at least 5 times.
"The concern with this population is that their health needs are being met in the Emergency Department so they use it more frequently. And this is most unfortunate because the Emergency Department visits can end up being stressful for everyone. This indicates the need to improve primary care and social services in the community," says Paul Kurdyak, Adjunct Scientist at ICES and psychiatrist in the ED at CAMH.
"My sense is that most often people with IDD will see a family physician in the ED. Family physicians are most likely to focus on urgent physical health issues and, if none is identified, discharge the person to follow-up with his or her community family physician. Cognitive function is not routinely screened, as are vital signs, so the family physician might not even be aware that the person's visit is related to his or her intellectual and developmental disabilities and/or possible psychiatric issues. When these issues are missed, frequent return visits may simply mean that the needs of the person with intellectual and developmental disabilities were unmet. The other concern is the over-use of antipsychotic medications and that these may be started in the context of an ED visit," says Dr. Bill Sullivan, primary care physician at St. Michael's Hospital.
###
The study "Are adults with developmental disabilities more likely to visit EDs?" is in the May, 2011 edition of American Journal of Emergency Medicine.
More detailed study findings are on the ICES website: www.ices.on.ca
Contact:
Michael Torres
CAMH Media Relations
416-595-6015
media@camh.net
Deborah Creatura
Media Advisor, ICES
deborah.creatura@ices.on.ca
416-480-4780 or cell 647-406-5996
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world's leading research centres in the area of addiction and mental health. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues. CAMH is fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, and is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Centre. For more information, please visit www.camh.net.
ICES is an independent, non-profit organization that uses population-based health information to produce knowledge on a broad range of health care issues. Our unbiased evidence provides measures of health system performance, a clearer understanding of the shifting health care needs of Ontarians, and a stimulus for discussion of practical solutions to optimize scarce resources. ICES knowledge is highly regarded in Canada and abroad, and is widely used by government, hospitals, planners, and practitioners to make decisions about care delivery and to develop policy.
First North American study to look at ED use by adults with intellectual disabilities
2011-05-13
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
As time goes by, it gets tougher to 'just remember this'
2011-05-13
It's something we just accept: the fact that the older we get, the
more difficulty we seem to have remembering things. We can leave our
cars in the same parking lot each morning, but unless we park in the
same space each and every day, it's a challenge eight hours later to
recall whether we left the SUV in the second or fifth row. Or, we can
be introduced to new colleagues at a meeting and will have forgotten
their names before the handshake is over. We shrug and nervously
reassure ourselves that our brains' "hard drives" are just too full
to handle the ...
Artificial grammar learning reveals inborn language sense, JHU study shows
2011-05-13
Parents know the unparalleled joy and wonder of hearing a beloved child's first words turn quickly into whole sentences and then babbling paragraphs. But how human children acquire language-which is so complex and has so many variations-remains largely a mystery. Fifty years ago, linguist and philosopher Noam Chomsky proposed an answer: Humans are able to learn language so quickly because some knowledge of grammar is hardwired into our brains. In other words, we know some of the most fundamental things about human language unconsciously at birth, without ever being taught.
...
Best Friends and Partners Expand New York State DVD Rental Kiosk Network
2011-05-13
Owning and operating a network of DVD rental kiosks provides supplemental and primary income for working people and entrepreneurs alike. Many DVDNow owner-operators entered into this business because they desire financial independence and the freedom to spend time on the good things in life that are most important to them. This is what Toni Carlos was thinking when she partnered up with her best friend Sue Bacey and started their DVDNow rental business, DVD To Go.
Her most recent position being the Director of New York Compliance, Toni has been an attorney for 15 years. ...
Sports News Of New Website Launch Providing Wimbledon Live Streaming
2011-05-11
Wimbledon, or the Wimbledon Championships, is the oldest association tennis tournament in the world and considered by most to be the most prestigious on both the ATP and WTA Tours. It has been held at the All England Tennis Club in London, SW19, since 1877 and along with the French Open, Australian Open and US Open forms tennis' Grand Slam.
The current Wimbledon champion is Rafael Nadal although the Spaniard will face strong competition from Roger Federer, who has won the tournament six times, as well as Serbian star Novak Djokovic. British number one Andy Murray always ...
Andrew's Refinishing "Goes Google" To Better Service Their Expanding Customer Base
2011-05-11
Andrew's Refinishing recently utilized the services of VIP Clouds to set up a suite of Google Enterprise Applications - Google Mail (Gmail), Google Docs, Google Calender, and Google Chat in order to better improve their business implementation strategies, and to enhance the overall structure of how electronic correspondence is maintained, and organized.
"Google Apps has allowed us to organize our inbox to better suit each one of our employees' specific needs." said Simon Telfer, President of Andrew's Refinishing. "With emails being a major part of our ...
Grammy Winning Artist Steve Vai Goes Live with GuitarTV.com
2011-05-11
Grammy Award-winning music artist Steve Vai and technology entrepreneur Andy Alt have launched GuitarTV.com, a 24-hour interactive guitar channel dedicated to streaming videos of legendary guitar performances from the most accomplished guitarists in history, artist interviews, lessons, live broadcasts, and more.
"Most people are fascinated to see someone play an instrument in an inspired way. We are moved by witnessing musical brilliance, and it was this notion that led me to purchase the GuitarTV domain 10 years ago," says GuitarTV.com Founder, Steve Vai. ...
Miratel Solutions to Sponsor Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) Toronto Fundraising Day 2011
2011-05-11
Miratel Solutions are a leading provider of nonprofit fundraising services designed specifically for charitable organizations, enabling them to strengthen and build their donor base, improve operational efficiencies and optimize money raised in support of their missions. Established in 2000, the company have successfully completed more than 40 million donor interactions via phone, web, fax and mail resulting in over $1.3 billion in gross fundraising revenue. Some of Canada's largest and most reputable nonprofit organizations continue to entrust their telephone fundraising, ...
Northern California Pediatric Dental Practice Awarded First LEED Certification in Nation
2011-05-11
Gila C. Dorostkar, DDS, announced today that the newly dedicated 2500 square-foot pediatric dental facility located at 1300 South Eliseo Drive in Greenbrae, California, is the first privately funded pediatric dental office in the U.S. to be awarded LEED certification. The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for commercial interiors was awarded by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). Gila C. Dorostkar, DDS, is also a member of the Eco-Dentistry Association (EDA) and is scheduled ...
Finding the Best Texas Land for Sale
2011-05-11
The team at Texas Land Man, LLC is just that, a team. They work together and they work very hard to find each individual customer the land that matches their exact needs. Whether a buyer is looking for ranch land to profit off of, or simply a few acres of land rich in wildlife to go hunting on during the weekends, Texas Land Man has something for everyone. They represent land in the East, West, South, and the Hill Country of the state, further proof of their level of expertise in selling only the best Texas Land for Sale.
These days, real estate tends to be a very tricky, ...
Financial Expert to Present "Becoming Fiscally Fit" Series to Claremont Graduate University
2011-05-11
Financial expert Randy Whittle of Clarity Wealth Solutions will speak to the faculty and staff of Claremont Graduate University (CGU) on May 12. His presentation, "Becoming Fiscally Fit," is the first in a yearlong series of presentations that will cover a wide range of financial topics including basic principles of cash and credit management, options for a quality retirement, financial blunders to learn from, and tax and estate planning. The goal of the series is to provide CGU faculty and staff with the tools they need to become and stay fiscally fit over their ...