The Mental Health Engineer: An Agent for Institutional Change

The authors point out that mental health delivery systems lose potential effectiveness because of the gap between research and application, a gap that is likely to become even wider as knowledge becomes more compartmentalized. They propose the creation of a new class of professionals who would act as intermediaries and change agents to translate current research knowledge into programs. These professionals, defined as mental health engineers, would function some what like industrial engineers, as constructive critics and active, responsible participants in change. The authors describe how the mental health engineer might help decrease hospital admissions, reduce staff alienation, or change a ward treatment program.