Involuntary Medication in Orders of Non-Hospitalization

Patients involuntarily committed to psychiatric hospitals are commonly discharged on orders of non-hospitalization. During the hospitalization, the medication regimens are often in transition such as when cross tapering from one medication to another or when switching from oral to injectable medication. These transitions are frequently not completed by the time of discharge. Once in the community, the psychiatrists are reluctant to alter the regimen that was in force at the time of discharge potentially leaving the patients with an excessive medicine burden.