Current and Future Perspectives of Liaison Psychiatry Services: Relevance for Older People’s Care

A large number of people admitted to medical wards have co-morbid mental health problems, and these predominantly include depression, dementia and delirium. An additional one third of medically ill patients remain in hospitals with undetected and, therefore, undiagnosed mental health problems. The comorbidity of mental and physical illnesses leads to poor health outcomes, prolonged inpatient stays and use of inpatient resources, involvement of various affiliated health services, introduction of medications and discharge to long-term facilities, including residential and nursing 24-h care, increased both readmission rates and mortality. The establishment of Liaison psychiatry services to meet the needs for people with mental health problems admitted to medical wards is a priority for many acute health Trusts. This has an economical background in terms of cost-savings, especially in relation to the older adults, with decreasing readmission rates and quicker hospital discharges. In the current review, we address the latest policies regarding Liaison psychiatry services; especially those for older people with dementia and delirium, and discuss their future shaping.