FIVE‐YEAR FOLLOW‐UP OF GERIATRIC CHRONICALLY ILL MENTAL PATIENTS IN FOSTER HOME CARE

A bstract : A follow‐up study of 12 geriatric chronically ill mental patients placed in foster homes as the result of an intensive ward rehabilitation program revealed that 8 (67 per cent) of these men remained out of the hospital at the end of five years. Six had been discharged from the hospital and 2 remained on trial visit status in foster homes. All but 1 of the 8 men were still in foster homes at the time of follow‐up. Neither age, the severity of psychiatric disability nor the length of previous hospitalization was a deterrent to success in home care, as long as the patient was not extremely irritable or aggressive. Indeed, the older men in this study remained out of the hospital significantly longer than did the younger ones. Eight of the 12 patients required transfer to a new foster home, re‐admission to the hospital, or new placement after rehospitalization—which shows the importance in such a program of having continuous supervision by a persistent social work staff. The number and proportion of geriatric chronically ill patients who reside in our mental hospitals have risen dramatically during the last few decades and will almost certainly continue to increase. By the usual channels of release from the hospital, this group of patients has the poorest prospects of all to remain out of the hospital. Foster home care is a humane and economical alternative for many of these patients. Our findings indicate that if patients are carefully selected, prepared and supervised after placement, the chances of long‐term success in foster home care can be impressively good.