Effect of PACT on inpatient psychiatric treatment for adolescents with severe mental illness: A preliminary analysis

Objective: This study examined whether inpatient psychiatric treatment and forensic treatment and incarceration were reduced among adolescents and young adults with severe and persistent mental illness after they received services in the Program of Assertive Community Treatment (PACT). Methods: The pre-post evaluation compared length of inpatient treatment and forensic treatment or incarceration for the year before and after PACT enrollment. Participants (N=15) were their own controls. Results: Annual psychiatric hospitalization fell from 66.2 days before enrollment to 8.7 days in the first year of PACT (p=.025, Cohen's d=.54). Similarly, combined days of inpatient psychiatric treatment and forensic treatment or incarceration fell from 104.1 in the year before enrollment to 24.1 days in the year after (p=.015, Cohen's d=.61). Conclusions: PACT services significantly reduced time in inpatient psychiatric treatment. These preliminary results may have implications for long-term treatment, service delivery, and cost of care for adolescents and young adults with severe and persistent mental illness.