FAQ: Hospitalizations

Mental health hospitalizations happen very rarely at MIT. For example, in the most recent academic year for which we have data, only 43 of more than 1,900 students seen in Student Mental Health and Counseling were hospitalized. Twenty-six of those students—nearly two thirds—returned to school quickly after being discharged from the hospital. It’s also important to note that most mental health hospitalizations are voluntary. This means that the patient agreed that they were at risk and would benefit from intensive treatment. 

In Massachusetts, a person can be hospitalized involuntarily only when there is a serious risk of harm to self or others.

To assess risk, the clinician weighs a variety of factors that might increase or decrease risk for a particular patient. These factors include the patient’s current situation, past history, mental status, and available supports. For example, someone who currently shows signs of depression, has previously attempted suicide, has a specific suicide plan, is intoxicated, or has a history of not being able to control violent impulses would be considered at higher risk. But the clinician also considers factors that could reduce risk, such as the availability of social supports in the form of family, friends, housemasters, clergy, or others. For the clinician, the most important considerations are the individual’s safety and the safety of others. 

Sometimes. Each inpatient unit has its own policies about the use of phones and the Internet, and access may not always be available. Since patients are there for treatment, some facilities restrict activities that may interfere with this work. On the other hand, therapists also recognize that maintaining contact with the outside world is important for a person's mental health—and that this is particularly true for a student.  

Usually. Most psychiatric inpatient units will allow a patient to have visitors during specified visiting hours, but it is up to the patient to say if they want to see those visitors.  

The attending psychiatrist in the inpatient unit has the final word on discharges, but the decision is usually made in consultation with the rest of the inpatient team and the patient’s outpatient care providers, including those at MIT Health. A patient is discharged when the hospital staff believes they can live safely in their home environment and can receive the treatment that they need.

Sometimes a student may no longer require hospitalization but may still need more support than they can get at MIT. Or the student may not be quite ready to plunge back into their previous academic and social life on campus. In this situation, the student may consider a “leave from MIT for medical reasons,” which will give them more time to recover before resuming their studies. See FAQ: Medical leave from MIT. 

You can ask the hospital staff for information, but it may be some time before you get a reply, because the staff will have to ask your friend’s permission before giving out any information. Likewise, MIT Health clinicians and counseling deans cannot give out information without the student's permission. But someone, such as a housemaster, may have discussed with the student what information they would like to have conveyed to friends and can provide that information when asked.