Recidivism in Difficult Patients: Differences Between Community Mental Health Center and State Hospital Admission

A sample of 293 individuals brought to a CMHC was compared with 163 brought to a state institution, over a period of 6 months. Length of stay & subsequent hospitalizations were reduced when they were referred to the CMHC rather than to the state facility. However, the high rates for both the CMHC (56%) & the state institution (76%) indicates hospitalization can not be avoided for severely disturbed patients.(NBB)