The economic evaluation of community psychiatric reprovision: final report to North Thames Regional Health Authority

<p>In-patient hospital care for people with long-term mental health problems is being replaced with community-based support as a core component of health policy across the UK. Indeed, it is national policy in England to close most of the psychiatric hospitals by early next century. Many factors have led to this policy, cost and cost-effectiveness considerations among them. Thus the relocation to community-based care is being undertaken in increasingly cost-conscious policy and practice<p><p>environments, and service providers and purchasers are regularly questioning the resource implications of new policy and<p><p>practice developments.

<p><p><p>The Personal Social Services Research Unit (PSSRU) has conducted an economic evaluation of psychiatric or community<p><p>reprovision associated with the closure of Friern and Claybury hospitals in north London. The evaluation is seeking: (a) to describe services used by former in-patients of the two hospitals; (b) to cost the psychiatric reprovision; and (c) to examine cost-outcome links.