INFLUENCE OF OPEN DOOR POLICY IN MENTAL HOSPITALS

Abstract

About 1955 a meeting took place in London of members of the Association of Superintendents of Mental Hospitals with the purpose of exchanging information and experiences relating to the "open door" policy in mental hospitals. The "open door" at that time was already well established in most mental hospitals in Great Britain and in Scotland. It became apparent that there were two approaches to the problem, depending mainly on the basic temperament of the director of the particular hospital.

In one type of hospital, the "open door" was adopted fully and without reservation; even the most acute patients·and the new admissions were left without protection of the closed door. The second approach was somewhat more conservative, accepting basically the open door for the entire hospital, leaving only one ward on the male side and one ward on the female side locked for the acutely disturbed patients.