Old and New: A Comparison of State Psychiatric Hospitals

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1996

Keywords

state hospitals

Abstract

This study examined whether state hospitals in operation before deinstitutionalization still cary vestigates of older models of psychiatric care. Using a national database, the authors compared 166 state hospitals built before 1949 with 80 state hospitals built after that time. The old hospitals treated fewer children and adolescents, received more state funding and less third-party funding, had fewer professional clinical staff, spent less on salaries and maintenance, and had more beds, a lower turnover rate, and a longer average length of stay. Findings suggest that planners and policymakers should take into account a facility's history when attempting to introduce innovations.

Citation / Publisher Attribution

Psychiatric Services, v. 47, issue 8, p. 866-868

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