Emergency-Department-as-a-First-Contact-for-MHA-Adults

INDICATOR NAME

Name

Emergency Department as a First Contact for a Mental Health and Addictions Condition (for adults)

Alternate Name

Percentage of people aged 16 and older who did not receive mental health and addictions care from a family doctor or psychiatrist in the two years preceding a visit to the emergency department for a mental illness or addiction

INDICATOR DESCRIPTION

Description

This indicator measures the percentage of people who did not receive mental health care from a family doctor or psychiatrist over the preceding two years, among people aged 16 and older who visited the emergency department for a mental illness or addiction.

Indicator Status

Active

HQO Reporting tool/product

Public reporting

Dimension

Timely

Type

Outcome

DEFINITION AND SOURCE INFORMATION

Unit of Measurement

Percentage

Calculation Methods

Numerator divided by the denominator times 100

Numerator including inclusion/exclusion

Number of adults without any mental health and addictions (MHA)- related service contact in a 2 year look back period; includes only those who did not have an MHA-related outpatient visit to a psychiatrist or a general practitioner/family physician or an MHA-related emergency department (ED) visit (scheduled or unscheduled) or an MHA-related hospitalization in the 2 years preceding the index ED vis

Exclusions: (apply to both numerator and denominator):

1. Invalid IKN

2. Missing sex

3. Age: <16,>105

4. Non-Ontario resident

5. Planned or scheduled ED visits

Denominator including inclusion/exclusion

Number of adults with an incident (first in a calendar year) unscheduled ED visit for MHA

Adjustment (risk, age/sex standardization)- detailed

Age- and sex-standardized to the 2006 Ontario census population

Data Source

Discharge Abstract Database (DAD), National Ambulatory Care Reporting System (NACRS), Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) Claims History Database, Ontario Mental Health Reporting System (OMHRS), Registered Persons Database (RPDB)

Data provided to HQO by

Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES)

Reported Levels of comparability /stratifications (defined)

Age, Income, Region, Rurality, Sex, Time

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

Caveats and Limitations

Limitations include potential coding errors and a lack of clinical detail. The data does not capture MHA-related care provided in the community by non-physicians (e.g., nurse practitioners, psychologists, and social workers).