JAPANESE MENTAL HEALTH CARE IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT: WHY DID JAPAN BECOME A COUNTRY WITH SO MANY PSYCHIATRIC CARE BEDS?

Abstract

Mental health care has been shifting from psychiatric institutions towards community-based settings for the last 40 years in most countries. However, Japan still has a very high ratio of psychiatric care beds per capita, and the average length of stay in psychiatric institutions is nearly 300 days. By examining the history of Japanese mental health care, this paper analyses the reasons why it has been heavily dependent on hospital-based care, and why Japan still relies on it to this day. The roles of psychiatric social workers, who promote the rehabilitation of people with mental disorders, is also presented in the conclusion