Conclusion

Abstract

The process of dismantling the mental hospital system has proceeded at such a pace that considerations about rationalising it, have been left behind by events. Sending patients out of the mental hospitals has been a main feature of central Government policy for nearly thirty years, but has more recently gathered momentum. What we know about this process is limited: what we think we know is a great deal. What we can expect to happen is anybody’s guess, hence our attempt in this book to map out some of the likely contours.