The Unit System: Current Staff Attitudes and Future Directions

The geographic unit system, with its concept of equal treatment for all mental patients, has been widely adopted by psychiatric hospitals. By bringing acute and chronic patients together and exposing the latter to a large number of high-quality staff members, it has contributed materially to the return of long-term patients to the community. However, the release-oriented benefits of the system may now be leveling off, and criticism of it is increasing, particularly from proponents of specialized treatment programs. The authors describe the development of a typical unit system, report findings of two surveys of current staff attitudes, and discuss the system's past contributions and potential.