Children with mental health problems are spending more and more time in emergency departments at both the Connecticut Children’s Medical Center (CCMC) and Yale-New Haven Hospital, according to a Connecticut Health Investigative Team (C-HIT) article.
A CCMC report obtained by C-HIT found that over 250 children spent multiple nights in CCMC’s emergency department between January and July of this year, and expects that number to reach 500 by year’s end. If this trend continues, the report projects that children will spend 3,085 nights in that hospital’s emergency department this year, more than three times the amount of time spent by children in 2010. Yale-New Haven Hospital said it has seen a 10% to 15% increase in such emergency department visits this year, the article stated.
Hospital administrators attributed the increase to a shortage of placements for children who need intensive residential care, as the Department of Children and Families (DCF) emphasizes keeping children with their families, according to the article. Children often end up in the hospital when their parents are unable to cope, hospital administrators said.
A DCF spokeswoman said the sharp rise in emergency department stays is unrelated to the closing of group homes or a shortage of treatment programs, but “mirrors a national trend driven by myriad factors,” including “a national move away from institutional care to family settings.” DCF is looking into the recent increase and considering how children can receive proper services, she stated.
