ABSTRACT
In their book on treatment selection, Perry, et al., (1990) recommend a more discerning approach to treatment selection and add support to the notion that intensity and type of treatment can be uncoupled from location; the most intensive level of service does not necessarily have to take place in the most restrictive setting; i.e., hospital. Before clinicians arrange hospital admission for their patients in a crisis, they should consider what specific components of inpatient treatment are needed, and with what degree of intensity. What is the specific “insufficiency” that the patient is showing (see Chapter 2). All functional mental disorders can be treated by MCHT if the right conditions prevail. MCHT may be able to provide whatever components of in-patient treatment the patient needs, using their current supports. Using the components of in-patient treatment list in Chapter 2, and the key elements and principles described in Chapter 4, the following two chapters describe how six acute mental disorders are treated: depression, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, mania, first episode psychosis, and postpartum disorders. Only those aspects germane to home treatment are included; it is assumed that staff are experienced enough to be familiar with the general principles of managing these conditions. This account is supplemented by numerous case histories.
