COVID-19 and psychiatric inpatients: Sociodemographic and clinical outcomes in a COVID specific psychiatric service

Aim: This study aims to evaluate the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of psychiatric inpatients diagnosed with COVID-19 during the pandemic, and to assess the interaction between psychiatric disorders and infectious diseases in a COVID-specific psychiatric service. Methods: A total of 24 psychiatric inpatients diagnosed with COVID-19 and fulfilling DSM-5 diagnostic criteria were retrospectively analyzed between September 2020 and January 2021. Sociodemographic variables (age, gender, marital status, education level, smoking, alcohol/substance use, and employment status) and clinical outcomes (length of hospital stay, psychiatric diagnoses, and discharge methods) were recorded. Results: Among the patients, 71% were female and 38% were smokers. Bipolar and related disorders (42%) were the most common psychiatric diagnoses, followed by depressive disorders (29%) and schizophrenia (21%). Married patients had a significantly shorter hospital stay than unmarried patients (8.75 ± 2.91 vs. 13.09 ± 5.57 days, p=0.04). Smokers required a significantly longer hospital stay than non-smokers (14.37 ± 6.04 vs. 9.76 ± 4.32 days, p=0.026). A total of 66.6% of patients were discharged after completing treatment for both COVID-19 and psychiatric conditions, while 16.6% were referred to COVID-negative psychiatric wards for further psychiatric care. Conclusion: The findings highlight the complex challenges posed by the co-occurrence of psychiatric disorders and COVID-19. Sociodemographic factors such as smoking and marital status significantly influenced the outcome of hospitalization. Female patients and patients with bipolar disorder are more likely to be hospitalized, suggesting that these groups are the most vulnerable during pandemic. This study highlights the importance of specialized COVID-19 psychiatric services, tailored interventions, and the need for future research to optimize the care of psychiatric patients during pandemics.