MCT bij ouderen

Abstract

The number of elderly in our society is increasing. Psychiatric problems are common in this population. For adults aged 18 to 65, there already is psychiatric crisis home treatment for patients experiencing a psychiatric crisis at home. However, this did not yet exist in Belgium for adults over the age of 65. Since the 1st of November 2021, people over 65 who are experiencing a psychiatric crisis in the region of the Ghent-Eeklo-Flemish Ardennes Mental Health Care Network (PAKT) can rely on psychiatric crisis home treatment. For this reason, it was investigated whether this treatment is effective and cost-effective. There are currently no studies available on this subject. For this reason, different sub-aspects were considered. The effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of long-term psychiatric home treatment teams in elderly & adults and of psychiatric crisis home treatment teams (MCT) in adults older than 18 years were assessed. Finally, we looked for the characteristics of adults who were included for psychiatric crisis care at home and whether these are present in adults older than 65 years. Since there are no studies on MCT in the elderly, it is not possible to draw conclusions on the subject. However, a general trend is noted in the studies whereby the treatment always appears to be effective and often also cost-effective. However, further research is needed to confirm that this will also be the case for MCT for the elderly in Belgium.