The ward milieu and its effect on the behaviour of psychogeriatric patients

Research relating environment and behaviour indicates that relatively minor changes in the environment, such as restructuring a dayroom, can result in significantly improved psychosocial functioning in psychogeriatric patients. A project introducing multiple changes designed to improve the quality of life on a geriatric ward in a provincial mental hospital is described and discussed in the light of that research and suggestions are made regarding its replication under more rigorous experimental conditions.