Title: The History of Mental Illness in America: A Journey From Despair to Hope
1The History of Mental Illness in America A
Journey From Despair to Hope Recovery
Ms. Manzo
2 Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter
- We have been given many gifts as a nation we
are rich beyond measure. We Americans think of
ourselves as decent, generous, and compassionate
people, for the most part we are yet we treat
a large proportion of our own population as
though they are second class citizens undeserving
of our help, our resources, our understanding. - 2010
3 Colonial America
- Society believed insanity was caused by a full
moon at the time of a babys birth - These lunatics- (lunar) were thought to be
possessed by the devil - Treatments ice baths, bloodletting
4Colonial Treatment
- Barbaric
- Demon-possessed
- Senseless animals
- It was believed that patients chose to behave
irrationally, and doctors tried to help them
adopt a more normal manner. -
5Care?????
- Family
- Parish Church
- Those without family-
- placed in prisons- chained to walls, unclothed
- poorhouses
61770s
- First hospitals
- 1773- Williamsburg, Virginia
- Designed to keep those with mental illness away
from society- not treat them.
7The Public Hospital, Va.
817th-18th Centuries
9Dorothea Dix
10Dorothea Dix
- Schoolteacher
- Discovered many people with mental illness were
in jails. - Crusaded for the establishment or enlargement of
32 mental hospitals, transfer of those with
mental illness from almshouses and jails.
111840
- US Census
- Includes its 1st
- question on insanity
12Thomas KirkbrideDesigner of Asylums
13Athens Asylum for the Insane-1874
- 544 rooms- self-sufficient with dairy barns,
greenhouses, transportation system,
recreational activities - But others soon went there for food shelter
- Populations skyrocketed patient care
suffered. - Now old ways returnedice baths- shock
machines..
14An Asylum For Every State
15The Civil War
- Many servicemen- postwar trauma
- State hospitals and asylums overcrowded
- Restraints, shock therapy, opium
16Soldiers Heart- or PTSD
17Post Civil War
- Asylums now underfunded overcrowded
- Quality of care deteriorates
- Newspapers expose inhumane conditions
181900- Clifford Beers
19A Mind That Found Itself
- 1908- changed mental health care
- Beers autobiography chronicles his struggle
with mental illness and healthcare
20Mental Health Screening Begins
Dr. Thomas Salmon in 1905 Justice to the
immigrant requires a carefully considered
diagnosis while on the other hand, the interests
of this country demand an unremitting search for
the insane persons among the hundreds of
thousands of immigrants who present themselves
annually at our ports of entry.
21The National Committee For Mental Hygiene
- Founded in 1909- in NY by psychiatrists and Beers
- Goals
- To improve attitudes toward mental illness and
those with mental illness - To improve services
- To work for the prevention of
- mental illness promote mental
- health
221930s- The LobotomyMental Healths Darkest Hour
- Surgically separated the neural passages from the
back of the brain - Over 20,000 performed
- Abuse and neglect soared
23Asylums Renamed Mental Hospitals
- Psychiatric units opened in general hospitals
- Treatments ineffective
- Hospitals provided humane custodial care at best
- At worst- neglect or abuse
- Great Depressionovercrowding.
241946- National Mental Health Act
- President Truman - National Mental Health Act
- Creates for the first time in US history a
significant amount of funding for psychiatric
education and research - Led to the creation in 1949 of the National
Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).
251947-1951
- 1st community based health treatment for patients
in state institutions
261949- Lithium
271954
- Antipsychotic drugs introduced
- Thorazine- improves hallucinations and delusions
- Other medications now become available
281956
- Congress allocates- 12 million for
psychopharmacology - Number of consumers decline in mental institutions
291961- Action for Mental Health
- Report to Congress based on 5 years of research
- Task- arrive at a national program to meet the
needs of those with mental illness - Recommends improved research, training and
treatment in the field of mental health. - Attempts to answer
- Why has care of the mentally ill lagged?
- How can we catch up?
301960s
- Community health movement
- Outpatient services
- More research
- Less state mental hospitals
- More general hospitals with psychiatric wings
- More community health centers
311980s
- President Jimmy Carter
- Mental Health Systems Act
- Grant program
- Involves consumer input
- Offers education and support
- Strengthens the links between
- Federal and state services
321981-1985
- Carters work halted
- Mental Health Systems Act repealed
- Funding drops
33Behavioral Health Managed Care
- 1988
- States now carved out mental care from physical
care - Purpose increase efficiency
- Results led to erosion of health care
341990s- The Decade of the Brain
- President George Bush designates the 1990s as the
Decade of the Brain "to enhance public awareness
of the benefits to be derived from brain
research" through "appropriate programs,
ceremonies, and activities."
351994
- Behavioral Brain Imaging
- Helps scientists learn more about the development
of major mental illnesses.
361996
- HIPPA-regulation of forms, privacy and security
- Significant impact on caregivers of those with
mental illness
371999- The Voice of the Supreme Court
- Olmstead v. LC
- It is a violation to keep a patient in a
restricted setting when outpatient services are
available
38The Clinton Administration
- Bans the use of restraints in
- federally funded hospitals
- Report on co-occurring disorders ordered
39The Bush Administration
- Increased funding for community health centers
- New Freedom Commission on Mental Health
40The Obama Administration
- Mental health parity states that psychological
conditions must be treated equivalently to
physical illnesses.
41So why does the suffering continue?
42- Funding for research services is scarce
- Screening for childhood disorders does not exist
in most schools - Veterans are returning with few services
- Few jobs and places to live
43 And..STIGMA
44But We have come so far
- Mental Health is our last Civil Rights Movement.
- New advances in science are leading to better
lives - Recovery is possible.
45The Value of Hope Hard Work
- Having some hope is crucial to recovery none of
us would strive if we believed it a futile
effort. Leete 89
46And America is changing because we are saying
what we need to say!