Day hospitals

What are day hospitals? 

A day hospital is a healthcare facilities where patients can receive the care they need without leaving their family environment. The patient may attend a day hospital for a specified number of hours during in which they receive the treatment, care or therapy they require. Once the session has been completed, the patient returns home. 

Day hospitals offer treatment for a range of different pathologies, including eating disorders, some mental health conditions, diseases of old age and childhood disorders as well as cancer treatment. Individual day hospitals may specialise in certain types of treatment, with the most appropriate resources to ensure patients receive comprehensive quality care.

What are day hospitals for?

Day hospitals often provide care for people who are suffering from mental health problems who can benefit from intensive treatment in a partial care regime while maintaining links with family and community.

In turn, another objective is to intensively enhance the patient's capacities to establish or maintain social ties and interpersonal relationships. Day centres may also encourage the person's family or friends to actively participate in the therapeutic process. Individual, group and collective activities are carried out to promote autonomy and give the person all the tools they need to help them make a successful recovery. 

How are day hospitals run?

Depending on the centre's specialty, day hospitals may perform a multidimensional and interdisciplinary evaluation and diagnosis for patients using biological, psychiatric, and social approaches to ensure precise and quality care. Various forms of treatment may be offered, using individual and group pharmacological and psychotherapeutic techniques.

Day hospitals offer care and support to families, actively involving them in the therapeutic process of their relative and providing key information and advice on diagnosis, prognosis and treatment throughout the course of care. Day hospitals may also offer specialist services such as nursing care as part of an individual's treatment plan.