Compulsory Hospitalization, Severity of Disorders and Territorial Landscape: A French Study

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study, carried out in France, was to analyse important psychiatric sector disparities in the rate of compulsory hospitalizations as a function of the severity of disorders among the people hospitalized, and of certain variables linked to the territorial landscape (socio-demographic context, and primary and psychiatric care offer).

METHODS: The 125 sectors that took part in this study were divided into three groups on the basis of their compulsory hospitalization rates.

RESULTS: The results did not reveal any link between compulsory hospitalization rate and severity of disorders.

The hospitalization rate was correlated with variables specific to urban areas: it was higher in more densely populated areas with a larger proportion of people living alone and a greater number of shelters and social rehabilitation centres. It was also higher in the sectors with larger hospitalization capacity, with longer mean hospitalization durations, but with a lower rate of resort to psychiatry and larger human resources.

CONCLUSIONS: The frequency of resort to involuntary hospitalization in France does not seem to be linked to the severity of patients’ disorders, but it is higher in sectors with a profile specific to urban areas, larger hospitalization capacities and human resources.