@article{ref1,
title="Back so soon: rapid re-presentations to the emergency department following intentional self-harm",
journal="New Zealand medical journal",
year="2012",
author="Kuehl, Silke and Nelson, Katherine and Collings, Sunny",
volume="125",
number="1367",
pages="70-79",
abstract="AIM: To describe the number, characteristics and management of patients who presented to an emergency department (ED) with intentional self-harm and then re-presented for any reason within 1 week, over a 1-year period. METHOD: A retrospective records review from one New Zealand ED over 12 months. RESULTS: Of the 120 patients who attended the ED more than once with intentional self-harm, 48 re-presented on 73 occasions within 7 days of the index presentation. Of the re-presentations, 55% occurred within 1 day. Mental health assessments by emergency department staff were minimal; challenging incidents occurred in 40% of presentations; and there was an increase in the inpatient admission rate for second presentations. CONCLUSION: We identified a small group of patients who rapidly re-present to the ED following intentional self-harm. The reasons behind those re-presentations could include limited mental health assessments in ED and inadequate follow-up on discharge. System improvements in the ED including better collaboration with mental health services could improve how services address the needs of patients who present with intentional self-harm and reduce costs.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0028-8446",
doi="",
url="http://dx.doi.org/"
}