[Rehabilitation of psychiatric patients by half-way house admission--a catamnestic study].

In order to observe the course of rehabilitation of mentally ill persons a catamnestic study was done of 16 mainly schizophrenic former residents of the halfway house for mentally ill in Nuremberg. Along with the rehospitalization rate, the criteria for success were progress in the living and working fields. Concerning the course of illness and independent living very good results were found for the rehabilitation course. Reintegration into the working process could be advanced during the stay, stagnated however after the stay. Classifying the course of rehabilitation, overall or partial success was achieved in more than 80% of the patients interviewed. The stay in a halfway house, hence, is a good possibility for medical rehabilitation of younger patients with long-term mental illness. However, it also turned out that out-patient follow-up treatment and care is of great importance for the social relationships of the often isolated patients.