TA Coalition Assessment Working Paper DRAFT: Experiences and Lessons Learned in States with On-Line Databases (Registries) of Available Mental Health Crisis, Psychiatric Inpatient, and Community Residential Placements

Individuals experiencing a psychiatric crisis often experience long delays in accessing appropriate services. The use of a psychiatric bed registry that tracks all available crisis and inpatient psychiatric beds is one tool that many states are implementing to help address this issue. Psychiatric bed registries are systems that efficiently allow users to find appropriate inpatient psychiatric care for patients in need of such care. This paper describes the experiences of states with bed registries and shows how a holistic approach, including a robust crisis service system, can serve people experiencing a psychiatric crisis.