Buffalo State Psychiatric Hospital: An Inside Report from the 1950s

This research paper, written in 1956 and reproduced here in its original form, gives the reader a rare invitation to view the day-to-day activities of a functioning New York State hospital that cared for people with mental illness. It is not a radical exposé but rather a real-life look at a hospital from the inside. This is a hands-on document that reveals the activities of a social worker and the contributions of social work to beginning the changes in a mental health system that was starting to emphasize more community work with patients and families. Through the detailed descriptions of the hospital processes the reader gains a unique view of the operations of a large-burdened mental hospital in the 1950s. If you ever wondered about what was right and what was changing with the care system for the mentally ill, this book is a good place to begin; it's a real report from the confines of the system.