Reduction in Incidence of Hospitalizations for Psychotic Episodes Through Early Identification and Intervention

Objective: This study examined whether the incidence of hospitalization for psychosis was reduced by a communitywide system of early identifi-cation and intervention to prevent onset of psychosis. Methods: The Portland Identification and Early Referral program (PIER) was initiated in 2001. Youths and young adults ages 12–35 were identified by pro-fessionals in a wide variety of educational, health, and mental health settings. PIER program staff assessed, confirmed risk of psychosis, and provided treatment for 24 months to eligible and consenting young people (N=148). The monthly rate of first hospital admission for psy-chosis was the outcome measure for efficacy of identification and in-tervention. Admission rates before and after the program began accepting referrals were compared, both in the experimental area (Greater Portland) and in aggregated urban areas of Maine (control areas). Autoregressive integrated moving-average (ARIMA) models were used to assess the effect. Results:On the basis of ARIMA models, the rat