Preliminary Findings from the Implementation of Behavioral Parent Training in a Partial Hospitalization Program

There is limited research on outcomes of partial hospitalization programs (PHPs). Questions remain regarding necessary treatment components for favorable outcomes including how to involve parents. There is growing consensus regarding the importance of parent participation in youth mental health treatment. Behavioral parent training (BPT) is an evidenced-based approach based on operant conditioning to target youth behavior through active skills training for parents that has demonstrated benefits across a range of diagnoses. BPT is one of the most extensively studied and effective treatments for reducing oppositional and disruptive behavior in youth. Modifying BPT for use in a youth PHP is appealing given its effectiveness in outpatient settings and its impact across a range of diagnoses. The present study examines the impact of brief BPT within a PHP that serves patients 5–17 years of age. Results demonstrated that patients who received BPT were significantly less likely to visit the emergency department (ED), be admitted to the inpatient psychiatric unit, or be readmitted to the PHP within 1 month of discharge. The results held at six-month post-discharge from the PHP. These results suggest that the addition of BPT to a PHP provides targeted support to optimize parent involvement, which may reduce revisiting the ED and/or acute psychiatric care service utilization following discharge. These results may be particularly useful in revealing crucial treatment components when establishing best practices and/or standards of care for PHPs, though further investigation is required.