Integrating health and mental health services: historical obstacles and opportunities

Historically, health and mental health services have been separated by a variety of forces, including specialization; ideological, attitudinal, and financial barriers; the professionalization of psychiatry; and functional and organizational differentiation. Recently, several models of integration and coordination have been proposed. If they are to succeed, health planners will have to be aware of the essential ingredients of interorganizational cooperation and work to eliminate the obstacles to integration of health and mental health services.