Demographic and clinical profiles of admitted psychiatric patients of the East London Mental Health Unit in the Eastern Cape, South Africa

Abstract Integration of psychiatric care at the Primary Health Care (PHC) could be an important strategy towards addressing the shortages of in-patient mental health care services in South Africa. This study describes the profiles of admitted psychiatric patients at the East London Mental Health Unit (ELMHU) of the Eastern Cape from January 2016 to December 2016. In this retrospective cross-sectional study, an audit of medical records of all psychiatric in-patients managed at the ELMHU during the study period was undertaken.