The dependent patient in a psychiatric inpatient setting: Relationship of interpersonal dependency to consultation and medication frequencies

Abstract

To examine the relationship between interpersonal dependency and medical service use in a hospital setting, the number of medical consultations and psychotropic medication prescriptions were compared in matched, mixed-sex samples of 40 dependent and 40 nondependent psychiatric inpatients. Results indicated that dependent patients received more medical consultations and a greater number of medications than did nondependent patients with similar demographic and diagnostic profiles. Implications of these results for theoretical models of interpersonal dependency and for previous research on the dependency-help-seeking relationship are discussed. Practical implications of these findings for work with dependent patients are summarized.

Reconceptualizing Personality Pathology in DSM-5: Limitations in Evidence for Eliminating Dependent Personality Disorder and Other DSM-IV Syndromes

“…High levels of trait depen dency are linked with increased suicidality in psychiatric inpatients and outpatients (Clark, McEwen, Collard, & Hickok, 1993). Other investiga tions indicate that high levels of trait dependency and dependent PD are associated with excessive use of health and mental health services (O'Neill & Bornstein, 2001), and with increased risk for perpetration of child abuse (Bornstein, 2005a).…”

Illuminating a Neglected Clinical Issue: Societal Costs of Interpersonal Dependency and Dependent Personality Disorder

“…Studies have examined the relationship of dependency to health service use in college students (Bornstein, Krukonis, Manning, Mastrosimone, & Rossner, ), psychiatric inpatients (O'Neill & Bornstein, ), and community adults (Porcerelli et al., ). In the first study to address this issue directly, Bornstein et al.…”

“…Using a different methodology and outcome measure, O'Neill and Bornstein () examined the relationship between level of dependency and two variables—number of medical consultations ordered and number of psychotropic medications prescribed—in 80 psychiatric inpatients who had been prescreened for level of dependency upon admission using the MMPI Dependency (Dy) scale (Navran, ). A broad array of consultations were ordered (e.g., physical therapy, neurology, dietary, dental, hematology), with dependent patients receiving a greater number of consultations overall than nondependent patients with similar demographic and diagnostic profiles ( t = 5.23, d = 0.59, p < .001).…”

“…Studies have examined the relationship of dependency to health service use in college students (Bornstein, Krukonis, Manning, Mastrosimone, & Rossner, 1993), psychiatric inpatients (O'Neill & Bornstein, 2001), and community adults ). In the first study to address this issue directly, Bornstein et al (1993) prescreened 92 healthy undergraduates for level of dependency using the IDI (Hirschfeld et al, 1977), then collected data on visits to the college health center and visits to private physicians over 3 months.…”

The Complex Role of Personality in Cancer Treatment

“…For example, dependent psychotherapy and medical patients tend to overuse health and mental health services, incurring higher costs than nondependent patients with similar demographic and diagnostic profiles; these patterns hold in both outpatient and inpatient treatment settings (Bornstein, 1993, 1998; O’Neill and Bornstein, 2001; Porcerelli et al, 2009). Along somewhat different lines, O’Neill and Bornstein (2006) found that dependent patients undergoing inpatient treatment for an array of physical illnesses reported higher levels of satisfaction than did nondependent patients with similar diagnoses.…”