title: Gold Award: Community support services for adult psychiatric outpatients. Anchor Mental Health Association, Washington, D.C.
abstract: For more than two decades the Anchor Mental Health Association has helped former psychiatric inpatients in the Washington, D.C., area regain their place in the community. Beginning as an informal social club at a federal mental hospital, the association has grown to include a sheltered workshop, a transitional home, and a formal social club for outpatients. Supported by volunteer contributions, the United Way, the Catholic Archdiocese of Washington, and federal and foundation grants and contracts, the association offers services to hundreds of needy outpatients each year. Members of the association also have worked to improve community understanding of mental illness through public appearances on television and radio, and before public, private, and religious agencies, professional groups, and local government agencies.
mesh_terms: D000553:Ambulatory Care / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003156:Community Mental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004219:District of Columbia; D006208:Halfway Houses / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000534:rehabilitation; D011639:Public Opinion; D012050:Rehabilitation, Vocational