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Psychiatric EmergencyNCT05771545

Telepsychiatry to Enable Expedited Disposition of Psychiatric Emergencies

An observational study of Psychiatric Emergency, run by Hebrew University of Jerusalem at 8 sites in Israel.

Active, not recruiting

Under way, not looking for participants. Everyone needed has enrolled. The study is still running.

Official record
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Trial summary

The goal of this observational study is to examine the effect of using a video link for evaluation of patients in the psychiatric emergency room. Under current Israeli law, the attending physician must come in to physically examine the patient before they can be admitted involuntarily. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and older
Conditions the study is for
Psychiatric Emergency
What is being tested?
Telepsychiatry
How many people
959 participants
Where
8 sitesIsrael
Study dates
1 Jul 2023to 30 Jun 2026
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Study population: All patients who are evaluated for involuntary psychiatric admission via the ED, who meet the above criteria.

Who may be able to join

  • Must be evaluated in the psychiatric ED for potential involuntary admission

Who cannot join

  • Not justice-involved (i.e., brought in by police after committing a crime)

Trial locations and contacts

8 sites in 1 country.

8 sites in 1 country

Israel8 sites
  • HaEmek Medical Center

    Afula

  • Jerusalem Mental Health Center - Eitanim

    Jerusalem

  • Jerusalem Mental Health Center

    Jerusalem

  • Shaar Menashe Psychiatric Hospital

    Pardés H̱anna Karkur

  • Geha Psychiatric Hospital

    Petah Tikva

  • Ziv Medical Center

    Safed

  • Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center

    Tel Aviv

  • Lev Hasharon Mental Health Center

    Tsur Moshe

Other trials in Israel

About this study

The goal of this observational study is to examine the effect of using a video link for evaluation of patients in the psychiatric emergency room. Under current Israeli law, the attending physician must come in to physically examine the patient before they can be admitted involuntarily. Patients often de-compensate and even may become violent while waiting for the attending to arrive. Previous studies have shown that evaluation of such patients via video-link has an extremely high concordance with in person evaluation. This study will compare patients who are evaluated via video-link with historical controls evaluated under usual conditions. This is an observational study, which is taking advantage of a change in practice to collect data on two different ways of delivering care, via chart reviews. If successful, this study will show that the video-link is feasible and acceptable to patients and staff. The following hypotheses will be tested:

  1. The intervention will result in shorter ED time compared to historical controls.
  2. The intervention will result in fewer violent incidents compared to historical controls.
  3. The intervention will result in shorter overall hospital length of stay compared to historical controls.
Being tested
Telepsychiatry
Keywords
telepsychiatry, implementation science

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • TelepsychiatryOther

    Instead of coming to the hospital physically, the attending psychiatrist will evaluate the patient via a video-link.

Study groups in NCT05771545
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Pre-Innovation (Usual Care)Patients evaluated in the psychiatric emergency department for possible involuntary admission during the year prior to the innovation in care. During this period, the attending psychiatrist was required to physically come to the hospital to examine the patient.
Innovation (Tele-Psychiatry)Patients evaluated in the psychiatric emergency department for possible involuntary admission during the innovation period. Instead of physically coming to the hospital, the attending physician will evaluate the patient via video-link, which will be facilitated by the on-site psychiatric resident.
Receives: Other: Telepsychiatry

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. ED Time

    Amount of time, in hours and minutes, that the patient spends in the ED prior to disposition

    Measured: Patients arrive in the ED at a specific time and leave the ED at a specific time. We will compute the amount of time spent in the ED by each patient, up to two weeks.

Secondary outcomes (2)
  1. Violent Incidents

    Adjudicated violent incidents that occur, whether in the ED or on the psychiatry ward. Includes hitting, kicking, throwing, and property destruction

    Measured: Patients arrive in the ED at a specific time. Those who are admitted are eventually discharged. Violent incidents can occur during the entire time spent in the hospital, whether in the ED or on the ward, up to 90 days total.

  2. Hospital Length of Stay

    Length of stay, in days, starting with time of arrival to ED

    Measured: For patients admitted to the hospital through the ED, the beginning time is their arrival to ED, the end is the time of hospital discharge, up to 90 days later.

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted16 Mar 2023
  2. Study start1 Jul 2023
  3. Primary completion30 Dec 2024
  4. Study completion30 Jun 2026 (estimated)

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Cohort
Time perspective
Retrospective
Enrolment
959 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT05771545
Sponsor's protocol ID
HebrewUJ123
Status last verified
Jan 2026
First submitted
2 Mar 2023
Last updated
8 Jan 2026
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No: It is not possible to share IPD because of data security concerns and the stipulations of the research ethics committees that are approving the study

Publications

  • Shalev L, Lubin G, Kirresh S, Barash I, Tamary Guterman A, Bloemhof-Bris E, Hirschmann S, Avni A, Avirame K, Linder M, Bathish D, Badran R, Turm Y, Bloch B, Konas S, Izakson L, Asad F, Melamed Y, Raskin S, Raz D, Eitan R, Rose AJ. Adapting to the digital age in psychiatry: evaluating change in emergency department nurses and psychiatrists' views toward telepsychiatry for involuntary hospitalization. Front Digit Health. 2026 May 12;8:1810008. doi: 10.3389/fdgth.2026.1810008. eCollection 2026.

    PubMed 42206074
  • Shalev L, Bistre M, Lubin G, Avirame K, Raskin S, Linkovski O, Eitan R, Rose AJ. Enabling Expedited Disposition of Emergencies Using Telepsychiatry in Israel: Protocol for a Hybrid Implementation Study. JMIR Res Protoc. 2023 Oct 17;12:e49405. doi: 10.2196/49405.

    PubMed 37847548

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Psychiatric Emergency, run by Hebrew University of Jerusalem at 8 sites in Israel.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: under way, not looking for participants, as of the sponsor's last update on 8 Jan 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 8 sites in Israel. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 8 Jan 2026). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

ED Time (time frame: Patients arrive in the ED at a specific time and leave the ED at a specific time. We will compute the amount of time spent in the ED by each patient, up to two weeks.). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT05771545, which also lists 2 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 8 Jan 2026.

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