Adopting new models for continuity of care: what are the needs?

There are glaring, almost universal deficiencies in the organization of community resources for treating and rehabilitating the mentally ill, particularly psychotic patients, the author says. The deficiencies could be partly remedied by reorganizing psychiatric hospitals to play a key role in outpatient service delivery, and by paying more attention to the principles of continuity of care for psychotic patients. One way of doing both is through the model of a mini-mental-health-center adopted at a Veterans Administration hospital: the same terms provide active, continual care for patients regardless of whether they are in or out of the hospital. The program developed on one ward is described further in the next paper, written by ward staff members and others.