Evaluating risk factors for violence at the inpatient unit level: combining young adult patients and those with mental retardation

LePage, James P.; McGhee, Melanie; Aboraya, Ahmed; Murphy, James; VanHorn, Linda; Pollard, Scott; Dean, Patricia

doi:10.1016/j.apnr.2004.07.004

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Volume 18, Issue 2 , Pages 117-121, May 2005

Evaluating risk factors for violence at the inpatient unit level: combining young adult patients and those with mental retardation

James P. LePage, PhD
- Domiciliary Care Program (181), VA North Texas Health Care System, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Dallas, TX 75216, USA
- Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 214 857 1128.
Melanie McGhee, RN
- William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, Weston, WV 26452-8550, USA
Ahmed Aboraya, MD
- William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, Weston, WV 26452-8550, USA
- Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry, School of Medicine, West Virginia University, WV 26505, USA
James Murphy, MA
- William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, Weston, WV 26452-8550, USA
- Department of Behavioral Medicine and Psychiatry, School of Medicine, West Virginia University, WV 26505, USA
Linda VanHorn, RN
- William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, Weston, WV 26452-8550, USA
Scott Pollard, MD
- In private practice in Wyoming.
Patricia Dean, BA
- William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital, Weston, WV 26452-8550, USA

Received 2 July 2003; received in revised form 24 June 2004; accepted 26 July 2004.

Abstract

The current study demonstrates the use of patient case mix to evaluate the probability of aggression occurring on an inpatient psychiatric unit. The impact of combining young adult psychiatric patients with patients classified with mental retardation on the overall negative events and injuries on an inpatient psychiatric unit was evaluated. Results suggest when the combined number of young adults and patients classified with mental retardation exceeds 10 the unit is at high risk for aggressive behavior occurring. Recommendations for evaluating violence at a unit level using case mix are provided.