Present status of forensic psychiatry in Sweden

A description is given of the use and functions of mental reports preceding the sentence. The problems-- mainly the long waiting times for observations, the concentration on diagnosis, and the forensic psychiatrist's isolation from treatment work - associated with the present system are pointed out. The article also contains a brief account of psychiatric treatment within the penal system, inside and outside prisons, and a description of the Uppsala Clinic for Forensic Psychiatry, where the patients during observation for mental reports are treated in accordance with the ideas of "therapeutic community". A report, with recommendations for reforms, can be expected at the beginning of 1977.