NCJ Number
105878
Journal
American Journal of Psychiatry Volume: 5 Issue: 3 Dated: (Summer 1985) Pages: 39-44
Date Published
1985
Length
6 pages
Annotation
The deinstitutionalization of mental patients lost sight of the positive role facilities played in the lives of mentally disordered patients and has had several negative consequences.
Abstract
Mental institutions provided a safe refuge for those unable to function in society. They provided a place to live and work under guidance, sheltered from the demands and rejections of a community that did not understand or want them. Pressure to discharge patients resulted in an enormous exodus of patients into communities unable to care for them. Many patients lacked the flexibility to adjust to life in the community. While some had concerned family members who cared for them, many ended up in halfway houses with inadequate services and support. Others ended up in hospital forensic units for offenses such as disorderly conduct, loitering, or petty theft. The criminalization of the mentally ill is a consequence of deinstitutionalization resulting from the failure to view this policy in terms of its effects on other social systems. One response to this problem has been the establishment of the Wisconsin Correctional Service, a private, nonprofit organization that advises the criminal justice system on the criminalized mentally ill and provides intervention and treatment services. 20 references.