Social and Clinical Outcomes of Psychiatric Treatment

THIS PAPER presents evidence drawn from comparisons of the state of mind and life situation of applicants for psychiatric treatment at the time of their application and six months later. The study was done at the Psychiatric Receiving Center in Kansas City, Mo. This facility is a municipally supported intensive treatment center with inpatient, day hospital, and after-care services and an outpatient clinic.¹During the months May through October, 1963, there were 847 applicants for treatment. Of these applicants, 54 had incomplete records. There were 400 with whom it was impossible to conduct follow-up interviews six months later. This attrition was due, in 166 cases, to known geographical moves, confinement in institutions, including other mental hospitals, and death; 89 applicants flatly refused a follow-up interview, 145 applicants were untraceable with the means at our command. Thus, the data for this paper are drawn from