DAY HOSPITAL PROGRAMMING IN A PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL FOR CHILDREN

This article provides an overview of day hospital programming in a psychiatric hospital for children. In 1955, the directors of child guidance clinics in the Boston area discussed with the Massachusetts Division of Mental Hygiene a very pressing problem confronting community clinics. This was the need for special services for the many seriously disturbed children and their parents who are referred to clinics for study and treatment and are found to need more extensive services than those available in clinic programs, but are not in need of continuous placement or hospitalization. In July, 1958, eleven carefully selected children, only one a girl, from six to ten years of age began in the first summer program, which was modeled after a day camp. Within a few weeks, two of the inpatients were removed from the program because their extremely regressed behavior was hampering group development. As the group continued in the day hospital program through the winter of 1958-59, the children, again with counselor help, began to develop peer relationships. A day hospital program was also developed for certain children, for the most part not schizophrenic, who were able to attend the regular hospital school with inpatient children. The summer day hospital program operated for three years under the grant and proved itself an extremely successful community service. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved)