Reframe your outlook on recidivism.
1. Deinstitutionalization has placed many chronically mentally ill people in communities that are not prepared to care for them. A lack of fit between clients and the programs provided often results in repeated visits to psychiatric emergency services. 2. Repeated visits to a community program can be viewed positively: community services carry less stigma than hospital admissions, they are less expensive, and they are directly linked with the community. 3. By encouraging a return to a community program before decompensation necessitates a hospital admission, it becomes possible to focus on how a client can cope with, rather than simply react to, the illness.
Mental Hygiene Clinic, Veterans Administration Medical Center, Huntington, West Virginia.
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D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003156:Community Mental Health Services / Q000191:economics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000592:standards; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D012008:Recurrence; D013240:Stereotyping