Admission and stay in psychiatric hospitals in northern Norway among Sami and a control group. A registry-based study

Abstract

Background: The aim of this study was analyze the admission and inpatient stay at psychiatric hospital in northern Norway among people from the Sami-speaking municipalities (Sami group) and a control group (non-Sami group). Are they treated equally? Methods: All admissions and inpatient stay from the administration area of the Sami language law (eight municipalities) was matched with a control group of 11 municipalities. All adult patients treated during the 2-year time period 2009–2010 and registered by the Norwegian Patient Registry (NPR) were included in the study. Population data as of 2009 was accessed from Statistics Norway. The admission rate and the days in hospital (DiH) rate per 10,000 inhabitants/year were set as 1.0. Results: Both study groups had a significantly higher admission and DiH-rate than northern Norwegians in general. The median annual admission rate/10,000 inhabitants was 284 (Sami) and 307 (non-Sami), respectively (P = 0.23). Whereas there were no difference between groups with regard to DiH/10,000 inhabitants/year (P = 0.24), the males of the Sami group spent significantly fewer DiH when any form of coercion was used (RR = 0.41). Conclusions: Sami did not experience significantly more or fewer admissions (voluntary and compulsory) to psychiatric hospitals than the control group. There were significant intergroup variations in both groups.

• Coercion
• Inpatient
• Norway
• Psychiatry
• Sami

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank the staff at the National Patient Registry (NPR) for their excellent service and hospitality.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Disclosure

Ethical approval: Not required.

Source of funding: The study was funded by the Northern Norway Regional Health Authority.