Differences in the quality of residential provision for mentally handicapped people

This paper examines the quality of care in four types of residence for mentally handicapped adults in Britain. Data were gathered from 175 residents of 150 living units--mental handicap hospital wards, voluntary and private homes, local authority hostels and parental homes. Differences were apparent between the types of residence in terms of both residents' characteristics and care practices and routines. The findings indicate that some of the differences in care practices are not associated with differences in the residents' functioning. Additionally, alternatives to hospital care for mentally handicapped people are not providing demonstrably improved quality of care in several aspects of residential practice. A discussion of those aspects of care calling for more improvement is presented.