Predicting emergency department visits and hospitalization among the clients of Nova Scotia Mental Health and Addiction central intake assessment

Mental disorders can have negative impacts on people’s health, quality of life, relationships, and
productivity. However, people who are in need of mental health and addiction services encounter
significant challenges, including timely access to mental health services. As a result, clients’ mental
health needs are not met or not fully met, and their health will deteriorate, leading to higher risks of
emergency department visits and hospitalization. To address the challenge of mental health and
addiction service access, the Nova Scotia provincial government established a mental health and
addiction central intake process through a single, toll-free telephone number no matter where you are in
the province and whether you have a family doctor. The central intake system ensures all patients are
examined and prioritized the same way so that they are referred to the appropriate level of care in a
timely manner. Meanwhile, the central intake system tracks important demographic and health
information to allow decision makers and service planners at the provincial and health region levels to
better plan, improve and deliver services to Nova Scotians…

Faculty Supervisor:

JianLi Wang

Student:

Partner:

Nova Scotia Health Authority;Research Nova Scotia

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Professional, scientific and technical services; Public administration

University:

Dalhousie University

Program: