Assessing the knowledge of emergency medical care practitioners in the Free State, South Africa, on aspects of pre-hospital management of psychiatric emergencies

INTRODUCTION: Studies have reported that emergency medical care practitioners (EMCPs) encounter challenges when attending to psychiatric emergencies. The EMC provider's ability to understand, assess and manage psychiatric emergencies has been reported to be poor due to limited knowledge and insufficient training. In South Africa (SA), little is known about the knowledge of EMCPs on pre-hospital management of psychiatric emergencies. The objective of this study was to assess the knowledge of EMCPs working in the Free State province on aspects of pre-hospital management of psychiatric emergencies. METHODS: This descriptive study used a questionnaire survey to obtain data on the knowledge of EMCPs on aspects of pre-hospital management of psychiatric emergencies. RESULTS: Only 159 of the initial 192 questionnaires distributed were returned, giving a response rate of 82.8%. The majority (87.4%) of the participants reported inadequate knowledge of pre-hospital management of psychiatric emergencies. More than a third of the participants reported that they are not knowledgeable on how to assess a psychiatric patient (P < 0.01), 64.2% and 73.6% (P < 0.001 in both cases) could not perform mental status examination and lack the knowledge of crisis intervention skills for managing a psychiatric emergencies. The majority (76.7%; P < 0.001) of the participants are not conversant with the Mental Health Care Act 2002 (Act no. 17 of 2002). Finally, participants (94.3% and 86.8%, respectively; P < 0.001) agree that teaching and prior exposure to a psychiatric facility, as in work integrated learning, will empower EMC graduates with skills required to effectively manage psychiatric emergencies. CONCLUSION: EMC practitioners are often the first healthcare professionals arriving at any scene of medical emergencies including psychiatric emergencies. To avoid malpractices, which could be detrimental to patient's health, it is of utmost importance that EMCPs are well trained and equipped to manage any form of medical emergency including those involving psychiatric patients.