Modernization of a mental health act II: outcome effects

The authors studied the effect of Pennsylvania's 1976 Mental Health Procedures Act on the hospital course of involuntarily detained patients. They found that more court hearings to extend commitment were requested, held and approved under the modern law. There was a decrease in the number of schizophrenic patients who signed in voluntarily. They found no change in the mean length of hospitalization under the new law whether patients were voluntary or involuntary. They found that patients did not often sign in voluntarily or go to court within the legally prescribed periods.