International emergency nursing
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To describe the numbers and length of stay (LOS) of patients with mental health (MH) problems at a Dutch emergency department (ED) and the effect of a psychiatric intervention team (PIT) on patient flow. ⋯ The number of MH presentations increased over the three years while LOS remained similar. In the before and after intervention study, number of presentations increased even more while LOS decreased significantly. Specialist psychiatric input reduces ED LOS.