The impact of day hospital closure on social networks, clinical status, and service use: a naturalistic experiment.

Objective: Little research is conducted on service closures. We examined the social, clinical and service use impact of the closure of a partial hospitalisation service (day hospital) on its users. Methods: Patients attending the closing day hospital were studied at closure and one year after, and compared to patients at an unchanged day hospital. Results: The closure did not increase use of inpatient beds, primary care or emergency room. Overall clinical improvements were similar for both groups as were costs. Social networks of the discharged patients decreased. Conclusions: Closures of services need to be as carefully evaluated as new developments.