A report on Psychiatric medication, Deinstitutionalisation and Psychiatric hospital
Deinstitutionalisation (or deinstitutionalization) is the process of replacing long-stay psychiatric hospitals with less isolated community mental health services for those diagnosed with a mental disorder or developmental disability.
- DeinstitutionalisationThe modern deinstitutionalisation movement was made possible by the discovery of psychiatric drugs in the mid-20th century, which could manage psychotic episodes and reduced the need for patients to be confined and restrained.
- DeinstitutionalisationWith successive waves of reform, and the introduction of effective evidence-based treatments, most modern psychiatric hospitals emphasize treatment, and attempt where possible to help patients control their lives in the outside world, with the use of a combination of psychiatric medications and psychotherapy.
- Psychiatric hospitalIt meant that more patients could be treated without the need for confinement in a psychiatric hospital.
- Psychiatric medicationIt was one of the key reasons why many countries moved towards deinstitutionalization, closing many of these hospitals so that patients could be treated at home, in general hospitals and smaller facilities.
- Psychiatric medicationAsylums was a key text in the development of deinstitutionalization.
- Psychiatric hospital2 related topics with Alpha
Involuntary commitment
1 linksInvoluntary commitment, civil commitment, involuntary hospitalization or involuntary hospitalisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), (also known informally as sectioning or being sectioned in some jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom) is a legal process through which an individual who is deemed by a qualified agent to have symptoms of severe mental disorder is detained in a psychiatric hospital (inpatient) where they can be treated involuntarily.
Since then, there have been alternating trends towards the abolition or substantial reduction of involuntary commitment, a trend known as deinstitutionalisation.
In some jurisdictions, laws authorizing court-ordered outpatient treatment have been passed in an effort to compel individuals with chronic, untreated severe mental illness to take psychiatric medication while living outside the hospital (e.g. Laura's Law, Kendra's Law).
Mental disorder
1 linksBehavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning.
Behavioral or mental pattern that causes significant distress or impairment of personal functioning.
Services are based in psychiatric hospitals or in the community, and assessments are carried out by mental health professionals such as psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses and clinical social workers, using various methods such as psychometric tests but often relying on observation and questioning.
Psychotherapy and psychiatric medication are two major treatment options.
Deinstitutionalization gradually occurred in the West, with isolated psychiatric hospitals being closed down in favor of community mental health services.