[Mental health services evaluation]

The evaluation of the community mental health services to the chronic mental health patients is one of the areas of more interest since the psychiatric reform began. To carry out an evaluation of the attention in depth it is necessary to keep in mind many different aspects. The new conception of the mental health services has implied a change in the whole system. The evaluation process can be divide in three levels: structures, processes and results which are interrelated to each other. For each one of these levels specific indicators exist and all should complete a minimum requirements as being valid, objectives, sensitive and specific. For a good evaluation and planning of mental health services is necessary to know what type of services are implied in the attention, which are the patients that go to the services and which are the changes that have taken place in this patients.