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Focus

  • Volume 21
  • Number 1
  • January 2023

From the Guest Editor

Reviews

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages3–7

Emergency psychiatry stands at the fulcrum between the general principles of autonomy and liberty balanced against illnesses that both subvert autonomy and amplify risks for violence and suicide. Although all ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220071

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages8–17

Suicide is a serious public health issue and is a leading cause of death worldwide. Suicidal ideation is a common presentation in emergency department (ED) settings, with many nuanced complications. Therefore, understanding screening, assessment, and ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220072

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages18–27

How a community responds to behavioral health emergencies is both a public health issue and a social justice issue. Individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis often receive inadequate care in emergency departments, boarding for hours or days ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220074

Articles

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages28–34

Although emergency department (ED) visits for patients with mental illness are frequent, medical evaluation (i.e., “medical screening”) of patients presenting with psychiatric complaints is inconsistent. This may largely be related to differing goals for ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220063

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages35–45

Agitated patients can be dangerous to themselves and others. In fact, severe medical complications and death can occur with severe agitation. Because of this, agitation is considered a medical and psychiatric emergency. Regardless of the treatment setting,...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220064

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages46–51

Awareness of potential aggression and violence is crucial when treating patients experiencing mental health crises in psychiatric emergency and inpatient settings. To provide a practical overview for health care workers in acute care psychiatry, the ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220069

Ask the Expert

Communication Commentary

Ethics Commentary

21st-Century Psychiatrist

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages63–69

Empirically validated treatments for borderline personality disorder rely on fostering self-awareness of one’s internal experience for treatment success, yet these treatments do not include objective tools to assess self-awareness. Integrating biofeedback ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.20220070

Bibliography

Abstracts

Influential Publications

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages74–79

The treatment of severe mental illness has undergone a paradigm shift over the last fifty years, away from a primary emphasis on hospital-based care and toward community-based care. Some of the forces driving this deinstitutionalization have been ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.23022001

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages80–88

Introduction: Agitation in children and adolescents in the emergency department (ED) can be dangerous and distressing for patients, family and staff. We present consensus guidelines for management of agitation among pediatric patients in the ED, including ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.23022005

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages89–99

Previous studies of physical assaults in hospitals focused primarily on inpatient psychiatric units, leaving unanswered questions about the extent to which findings generalize to psychiatric emergency rooms. Assault incident reports and electronic medical ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.23022004

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages100–105

Agitation is a routine and increasingly common presentation to the emergency department (ED). In the wake of a national examination into racism and police use of force, this article aims to extend that reflection into emergency medicine in the management ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.23022007

Publication date: 01 January 2023

Pages106–110

The evaluation of a patient's competency to consent to treatment, regardless of the test of competency used, can be substantially affected by a number of clinical factors. The authors point out that, in assessing competency, the clinician must consider 1) ...

https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.focus.23022006

Past Issues

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No.4
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1 Oct 2024

Vol. 22 | No. 4

No.3
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1 Jul 2024

Vol. 22 | No. 3

No.2
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1 Apr 2024

Vol. 22 | No. 2

No.1
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1 Jan 2024

Vol. 22 | No. 1