The annual report published by the Mental Health Information Systems Unit of the Health Research Board, National Psychiatric Inpatient Reporting System (NPIRS) annual report on the activities of Irish psychiatric units and hospitals, 2022,1 shows that the rate of new admissions to inpatient care for alcohol disorders has decreased.

In 2022, some 806 cases were admitted to psychiatric facilities with an alcohol disorder, of whom 263 were treated for the first time. Figure 1 presents the rates of first admission between 2002 and 2022 for cases with a diagnosis of an alcohol disorder. Trends over time indicate an overall decline in first admissions. Just over one-third (35.3%) of cases hospitalised for an alcohol disorder in 2022 stayed just under 1 week, while 26.5% of cases were hospitalised for between 1 and 3 months, similar to previous years.

In 2022, some 813 cases were admitted to psychiatric facilities with a drug disorder. Of these cases, 318 were treated for the first time. Figure 2 presents the rates of first admission between 2002 and 2022 for cases with a diagnosis of a drug disorder. The admission rate in 2022 was lower than the previous year and is the lowest rate recorded since 2008. It should be noted that the report does not present data on drug use and psychiatric comorbidity; it is therefore not possible to determine whether or not these admissions were appropriate.

Source: Daly and Lynn (2023)

Figure 1: Rates of psychiatric first admission of cases with a diagnosis of an alcohol disorder per 100,000 of population in Ireland, 2002–2022

Source: Daly and Lynn (2023)

Figure 2: Rates of psychiatric first admission of cases with a diagnosis of a drug disorder per 100,000 of population in Ireland, 2002–2022

Other notable statistics on admissions for a drug disorder in 2022 include the following:

• Just under one-half of cases hospitalised for a drug disorder stayed under 1 week (44.7%), while 99.4% were discharged within 3 months. It should be noted that admissions and discharges represent episodes or events and not persons.
• 23.0% of first-time admissions were involuntary.
• Similar to previous years, the rate of first-time admissions was higher for men (10.7 per 100,000 population) than for women (2.7 per 100,000 population).

1    Daly A and Lynn E (2023) National Psychiatric Inpatient Reporting System (NPIRS) annual report on the activities of Irish psychiatric units and hospitals, 2022. HRB StatLink Series 13. Dublin: Health Research Board. Available from: https://www.drugsandalcohol.ie/39109/