Abstract(s)
With the increased need to assess and manage risk in inpatient settings, the Short-Term
Assessment of Risk and Treatability (START) was implemented on a civil psychiatric unit. The
goal of the present study was to examine the tool’s predictive validity when completed by clinical
teams as part of routine practice. Data were collected for 34 patients hospitalized for a minimum
of 30 days prior to and after a START evaluation. Several challenging behaviors, such as
aggression towards others, self-harm, and substance abuse were assessed using the START
Outcomes Scale (Nicholls et al., 2007). Results from multilevel logistic regression and Receiver
Operating Characteristics analyses lend partial support for the predictive validity of the START.
A limited set of START items combined was significantly better at predicting the challenging
behaviors than the original total Strength and Vulnerability scales. Results are discussed in terms
of the clinical use of risk assessment.