Risk factors for rehospitalization for patients following release from court-ordered evaluation: A retrospective study.

We have noticed an increase in the number of patients who go through the court-ordered evaluation (COE) process but are not placed on a court-ordered treatment, and who then return to the hospital on another COE petition within one year from their initial discharge. The aim of this study is to examine what factors might be involved in rehospitalization in this population of psychiatric patients. The records of 146 readmitted patients and 146 randomized patients not readmitted were compared for various risk factors. Data were analyzed using univariate and mutivariate procedures. All patients who had diagnoses of substance-induced mood or psychotic disorders were readmitted within one year. Other risk factors included younger age, seriously mentally ill (SMI) status, longer length of stay and having a psychotic or schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Substance-induced mood or psychotic disorder may play significant roles for patients who are rehospitalized within a year of initial COE.