Discharge from secondary care services to primary care for adults with serious mental illness: a scoping review

Effective transitions of patients from Secondary Care Services (SCSs) to primary care are necessary for optimization of resources and care. Factors that enable or restrict smooth transitions of individuals with Serious Mental Illness (SMI) to primary care from SCSs have not been comprehensively synthesized. A scoping review was conducted to answer the questions (1) “What are the barriers and facilitators to discharge from SCSs to primary care for adults with SMI?” and (2) “What programs have been developed to support these transitions?”. Barriers and facilitators of discharge included patient-, primary care capacity-, and transition Process/Support-related factors. Patient-related barriers and facilitators were most frequently reported. 11 discharge programs were reported across the evidence sources. The most frequently reported program components were the provision of additional mental health supports for the transition and development of care plans with relapse signatures and intervention plans. Established discharge programs should be comprehensively evaluated to determine their relative benefits. Furthermore, research should be expanded to evaluate barriers and facilitators to discharge and discharge programs in different national contexts and models of care. The protocol for this scoping review is registered with the Open Science Framework ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/NBTMZ ).