Equity and the psychiatric care of the black patient, 1950 to 1975

Abstract

The psychiatric treatment of the black patient in a Northeastern industrial region in 1975 is compared with the treatment patterns existing for black patients in 1950. This survey is part of the Trends in Mental Health Project, which is a 25-year follow-up of certain aspects of Hollingshead and Redlich's 1950 study, Social Class and Mental Illness (John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1958). This survey reveals that black patients in 1975, as compared to 1950, continued to utilize almost exclusively the state hospital for inpatient care. In addition, in 1975, black patients were receiving previously nonexistent outpatient services at the regional community mental health center. They were primarily found in treatment at this latter facility on units characterized by low intervention treatment and semi- and nonprofessional staff. Manpower findings reveal that few black clinicians existed except on the nonprofessional level. Finally, a concept of equity is applied to the survey results in order to raise important social policy issues.