Outcomes post-discharge from an early intervention in psychosis service

Aim: To investigate the effectiveness of an early intervention in psychosis (EIP) service on engagement and hospital bed usage, post-discharge. A secondary aim was to identify if there was a subgroup of patients with ‘poor outcomes’. Method: A naturalistic study comparing engagement and hospital bed day usage of individuals who received treatment from an EIP service (n = 75) with those who presented before the service was established (n = 113). Results: The EIP service demonstrated better engagement with service users in year 5 (P = 0.001). No significant differences were observed on hospital bed day usage. When ‘poor outcome’ cases were removed, a trend towards lower bed usage in EIP services emerged (P = 0.139). Conclusion: EIP services improve engagement with service users. There was not a significant reduction in hospital bed usage. However, advantages could be masked by a relatively small number of individuals with ‘poor outcomes’.