[A comparison of geriatric psychiatric inpatients of two German psychiatric university hospitals in integrated or separated (with regard to age) care--part 1: Type of patients].

OBJECTIVE: We wanted to compare geriatric psychiatric patients and their management in an integrated (with other adult age groups) care in the Psychiatric University Hospital of Göttingen (IGV) compared to those in a separated (according to age) care in the Psychiatric University Hospital of Magdeburg (SGV). The latter provides care for a certain area, while the former is not obliged to.

METHOD: We performed standardized chart reviews of randomly selected groups of patients, who had been treated in the IGV (n = 104) and the SGV (n = 144) in the years 1998 and 1999.

RESULTS: The SGV patients were significantly older (71.8 +/- 8.9 years versus 67.2 +/- 7.4 years), more often bereaved and/or living alone. The SGV patients' treatment was initiated by law in 23.2 % (IGV 3 %) of the cases. Inpatient pretreatment of psychic disorders was reported in 40 % of the SGV patients and in only 3.9 % of IGV patients, respectively. In addition, the SGV patients had significantly more complicating diseases, like cerebro- and cardiovascular or neurological diseases.

CONCLUSION: Older, more severely psychic and somatic ill patients were treated in the SGV. In general for about half of the cases, the hospital treatment had been the first psychiatric treatment at all. Since both are university departments differences in patient profile seem to be influenced by care system (integrated versus separated and obligatory).