Demographic and Clinical Characteristics of Black Psychiatric Patients in a Private General Hospital

A study of 419 first admissions to a private general hospital psychiatric inpatient unit showed that only 8.8 per cent were blacks, while 23 per cent of the population in the community were blacks. When compared to white patients, blacks were much less likely to be referred for hospitalization by private sources, were substantially younger, and had shorter hospitalizations. The most common diagnosis for blacks was paranoid schizophrenia. The authors conclude that despite the widespread availability of third-party insurance coverage, blacks use the private general hospital less often than whites and their patterns of use are substantially different.