Impediments in the treatment of schizophrenic patients

Treatment for schizophrenic patients used to entail long hospitalization, including individual psychotherapy and sociotherapy, and ideally involved significant others, culminating in rehabilitation or continuation of education and follow-up treatment. Under such regimens available mostly in the private sector, one third of patients became well and another third recovered sufficiently to function in the community. There has always been a cohort of between 25% and 33% who failed to recover and who usually became chronic patients in governmental facilities. Comprehensive in-patient programs have virtually disappeared in the United States. This paper will present factors involved in this change and the ensuing deficiencies in care. These impediments will be considered under eight subheadings.