Inpatient to outpatient care transition interventions for adults with mental health conditions: a scoping review protocol.

Objective: The aim of this scoping review is to provide an overview of the key characteristics of care transition interventions (CTIs) from inpatient to outpatient care for adults with mental health disorders.

Introduction: Many patients with mental health disorders experience treatment discontinuation during the transition from inpatient to outpatient mental health care, which is associated with high rates of rehospitalization and/or suicidal behavior. CTIs provide low-threshold support to facilitate patients' access and adherence to outpatient treatment and, ultimately, decrease rehospitalization rates.

Inclusion criteria: We will include quantitative and qualitative study designs as well as study protocols and systematic reviews on CTIs for adults with mental health disorders (except for neurocognitive disorders). The CTIs need to include the following features: i) initial session still during inpatient treatment or within the first 4 weeks after treatment and ii) at least 1 additional session after patient discharge. We will exclude i) interventions aiming solely to improve symptom severity (eg, medication, psychotherapy), ii) studies conducted in the context of forensic and/or prison mental health care, and iii) studies focusing primarily on return to work or the prevention of homelessness.

Methods: We will search PubMed, CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), PsycINFO (EBSCOhost), Web of Science, OpenGrey, and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses for potentially relevant records. Two independent reviewers will conduct the initial title/abstract screening and full-text screening. Data will be extracted in a draft charting table and presented in a narrative synthesis accompanied by graphic visualizations and tables, in line with the review questions.

Review registration: Open Science Framework https://osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/e9v7y_v1.