Defining outcome measures of hospitalization for assessment in the Japanese forensic mental health scheme: a Delphi study

BACKGROUND: A new legislation concerning forensic mental health was established by the Japanese Government in 2005, the “Act on Medical Care and Treatment for the Persons Who Had Caused Serious Cases under the Condition of Insanity,” or the Medical Treatment and Supervision (MTS) Act. Since it was passed, however, there has been broad controversy over Hospitalization for Assessment (HfA), the first stage of the MTS scheme. METHODS: Following a comprehensive literature search to assemble a list of candidates, we conducted a Delphi study to establish standard outcome measures for HfA. RESULTS: Five Delphi rounds were conducted by 19 panelists including medical practitioners and lawyers. A total of 139 items were accepted as outcome measures for HfA based on panel agreement. CONCLUSION: The Delphi study established a list of HfA outcome measures for the MTS act, which will contribute to the optimization of the new forensic mental health system in Japan. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1752-4458-9-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.