Media Release

For: Immediate Release
Date: October 26, 2007

Health Department to Review Hospital Admitting and Staffing Procedures

Today Director of Health, David R. Gifford, MD, MPH announced that as a result of the issues raised in a lawsuit reportedly filed against the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals (MHRH), the Health Department will begin a review of the admitting and staffing procedures related to psychiatric patients in Rhode Island hospitals.

The Health Department’s action follows a meeting this morning between Health Department staff and Ellen R. Nelson, Director for the Department of Mental Health, Retardation and Hospitals. Nelson had called the meeting to inquire about hospital licensing requirements and how they may relate to the admission of psychiatric patients at Rhode Island hospitals.

The lawsuit by the state’s mental health advocate reportedly alleges that psychiatric patients, often those who are uninsured, are being detained involuntarily in emergency rooms where they are not receiving appropriate care. These allegations raise the question of why hospitals are not admitting these patients or having the appropriate staff to evaluate and manage them.

All licensed hospitals must have available on call 24 hours a day, physicians in specialties appropriate to the scope of services provided by the hospital. New regulations also require that hospitals provide charity care for uninsured individuals below 200% of the Federal Poverty Level and partial charity care for uninsured individuals between 200% and 300% of the Federal Poverty Level.

“We are going to take a closer look at the root of what is happening in emergency departments when a psychiatric patient shows up”, said Gifford. “Are hospitals not complying with licensing requirements or the charity care regulations? If so, these are serious concerns and they must be addressed.”