Mental and Social Health Commons^™

The Relative Effectiveness Of Face-To-Face And Telephone Contact By Community Mental Health Workers During Psychiatric Inpatient Treatment Of Children And Adolescents, Bruce Patrick Hackworth

Dissertations

Problem. With the advent of managed care has come the increasing necessity to provide effective and efficient services to children and families experiencing severe emotional disturbances. The use of cost-effective and therapeutically effective services is at the crux of an effective service delivery system. Few studies have considered the usefulness and comparative effectiveness of face-to-face versus telephone interventions in therapeutic situations. This study considered the clinical value of face-to-face community mental health worker involvement during and after psychiatric inpatient hospitalizations of children and adolescents ages 11-17. The study also considered the comparative value of this follow-up when using master's-trained, mental …