Characteristics of calls by psychiatric patients to an emergency telephone helpline

The role of the Israeli emergency telephone helpline, ERAN, was investigated by comparative analysis of calls received from 464 patients being treated psychiatrically, with calls received from 3,292 nonpatients during 1994. Findings reveal different patterns for helping relations in the 2 groups: Those being treated psychiatrically on a regular basis called ERAN more frequently, expected emotional support rather than direct help, mainly presented mental problems, and suicidal thoughts were much more prevalent among them. Those under no psychiatric treatment often called only once and presented a wider spectrum of expectations and problems. These differences indicate that the interrelations between the para-professional ERAN service and professional agents are complementary for mental patients and substitutional for other callers.