Fast Facts: Decrease in Psych beds spells disaster
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Need for Services
- More than 1.6 million New Yorkers are living with serious psychological and mental distress.
- 4% of all NYS hospitalizations were for serious mental illness.
- Patients stay in the hospital longer on average for mental health related issues than other hospital stays.
- There are still few alternatives to Emergency Department and inpatient hospital stay for severe mental health crises.
Inpatient Psych Capacity
- 40,000 decrease in available psychiatric bed days
- Over 2,000 beds decertified since the year 2000
- 724 beds decertified between 2012 and 2018
Shifting Burden to the Public Sector
- 20% increase in mental health discharges at NYC Health+Hospitals
- There was a subsequent 5% decrease in mental health discharges at city voluntary hospitals.
Impact of COVID-19
- In previous crises like Hurricane Sandy, hospitals like Beth Israel saw a 70% increase in inpatient psychiatric patients.
- Nearly half of Americans surveyed about mental health issues during the COVID-19 crisis reported mental health strain.
- Continued reduction in capacity could lead to adverse outcomes as demand for services could potentially increase.
Resources
See More ResourcesHospital Closures Since 2000
Since 2000, more than 30 hospitals have closed across our state. NYSNA nurses fight back against hospital closures and service cuts that limit access to healthcare. Below is a list of recent hospital closures.
Closures Are Causing a Full-Blown Mental Health Emergency in New York
NYSNA has published the following white paper to document the deep crisis in mental health care in New York State, and to recommend alternative paths to the profit-driven shuttering of vital psychiatric services.