The effects of discharge on long-stay psychiatric hospital patients

One hundred and forty long-stay patients discharged from Callan Park Hospital were followed up. All except nine were accounted for and 90 who were living outside hospital at the time of the study were interviewed. Thirty percent of the total sample were readmitted during the mean follow up period of 20.4 months. Most of those living outside hospital said that they were happier than when living in hospital. They formed a relatively homogeneous socio-economic group with the majority living in boarding houses and convalescent homes and being unemployed.