Effects of Psychiatric Legislation: An Example from Kansas

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Abstract
Although psychiatric legislation has been significantly influencing psychiatric practices over the past two decades, few attempts have been made to study the actual effects of legislative enactments. The examination of the impact of the 1976 revision of the Kansas Mental Health Code reveals a 42% decrease in commitment proceedings and a 14% decline in the percentage of involuntary admissions over a 2-year period. However, the passage of the new law did not have a lasting effect on the rights of inpatients. Seclusion rates, decreasing sharply when the legislation was enacted, returned to their earlier levels within 2 years.

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