The Quality of Life of Chronic Patients in a State Hospital and in Community Residences

Amidst the controversy about the effects of deinstitutionalization, the well-being of the chronic mentally ill in different treatment settings remains unclear. This study examined objective and subjective quality-of-life experiences of four groups of chronic patients categorized according to whether they were inpatients of a state hospital or residents of a supervised community residence and whether their current length of stay had been less than or greater than six months. Regardless of length of stay, the community residents perceived their living conditions more favorably, had more financial resources, and were less likely to have been assaulted in the past year than the inpatients. The study illuminates the problematic living conditipns of state hospitals and the benefits of appropriately designed community-based residences for the chronic mentally ill.