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Community care of the mentally ill: Implementation of the Saskatchewan Plan

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Abstract

There has been partial implementation of the Saskatchewan Plan to replace the large centralized public mental hospital with small regional centers stressing community care. Intensive treatment of new patients together with intensive rehabilitation of old patients has greatly reduced the accumulation of chronic patients in the Saskatchewan Hospital, Weyburn. As a result there has been a significant fall in the population of the hospital from 1,478 in January 1963 to 443 at the end of 1966. Follow-up studies indicate that patients are doing well in community care and that there are no undue strains on community tolerance. This experience challenges justification of the continued existence of large isolated mental hospitals.

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References

  • CUMMING, J., & CUMMING, E. Ego and milieu. New York: Atherton Press, 1962.

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  • HERJANIC, M. Two-year follow up of 82 chronic psychiatric patients. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, 1966.

  • LAFAVE, H. G., HERJANIC, M., & GRUNBERG, F. One year follow up of67 psychiatric patients.Canadian Psychiatric Association Journal, 1966,11 (3).

  • LAWSON, F. S. The Saskatchewan plan, mental hospitals, 1957, S:27–31.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. New York State Department of Mental Hygiene, Albany, New York

    Hugh G. Lafave M.D. (Associate Commissioner for Manpower and Training) &  Frederic Grunberg M.D., D.P.M. (Deputy Commissioner for Mental Retardation)

  2. Saskatchewan Hospital, Weyburn, Saskatchewan, Canada

    Alex Stewart M.B., Ch.B., D.P.M. (Medical Director)

Authors
  1. Hugh G. Lafave M.D.
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  2. Alex Stewart M.B., Ch.B., D.P.M.
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  3. Frederic Grunberg M.D., D.P.M.
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Additional information

Dr. Lafave, a psychiatrist, formerly superintendent of Saskatchewan Hospital, Weyburn, Saskatchewan, Canada

Dr. Grunberg, formerly Director of the Psychiatric Services Branch, Saskatchewan Department of Public Health, Regina, Saskatchewan

We are deeply indebted to Dr. R. C. Hunt for his help with the preparation of this paper. Part of the material was originally presented under the title “Halving the Population of a Large Psychiatric Hospital Within Two Years” at the APA Meeting in Atlantic City in May 1966.

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Lafave, H.G., Stewart, A. & Grunberg, F. Community care of the mentally ill: Implementation of the Saskatchewan Plan. Community Ment Health J 4, 37–45 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01434450

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01434450

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