The phrase "absconding rate" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used in contexts related to the frequency or percentage of individuals who flee or escape, often in legal or criminal discussions.
Example: "The absconding rate among parolees has raised concerns among law enforcement agencies."
Alternatives: "fleeing rate" or "escape rate".
Our measure of absconding rate was a relatively coarse one, and the information which formed the basis of our analyses was taken from the electronic health record.
We supplemented this with an event-based index of absconding, calculated as the number of absconding incidents divided by the number of bed days over which they were counted (beds x days), and then multiplying by 100 to produce the absconding rate per 100 bed days (as per [ 34]).
First, our measure of absconding rate was a coarse one; although it is consistent with prior studies and recommended as one of the better options available [ 1, 34], we were unable to supplement it with more fine-grained measures (e.g., number of absconsions on unsupervised day passes divided by the total number of day passes granted) due to the unavailability of this type of data.
Using an A-B design of short duration (three months before and after the intervention) they found a 25% reduction in absconding rates in acute and general mental health wards.
An improvement, death and abscond rate were 77.8, 9.3 and 12.9 % respectively.
The rate of absconding found in the current study was comparable to other general mental health settings [ 6, 12, 35], and is reflective of a rehabilitating forensic sample located within a large, urban, community-integrated hospital.
The rate of absconding decreased progressively from 17.8% of all patients at risk prior to implementation of the new policy, to 13.8% during implementation, and further to 12.0% following implementation.
The effect of the policy on rates of absconding across each of the three time periods was evaluated with a z-ratio for proportions (two-tailed).
The effectiveness of this tool in reducing observed rates of absconding following its initial implementation is promising, and supports the validity and utility of the selected HCR-20 variables in assessing risk for absconding.
At the same time, research attesting to the difficulty of reducing rates of absconding over time [ 35], even alongside increasing emphasis on risk assessment and management practices [ 39], is important to recognize.
The current study is the first to demonstrate the effectiveness of a policy informed by structured professional decision-making and empirically derived risk factors for violence in reducing rates of absconding in a forensic setting.
