deinstitutionalize
Move from facilities
To deinstitutionalize is to release someone from institutional care—typically a psychiatric hospital, prison, or long-term care facility—and transfer them to community-based settings.
The term gained prominence in the mid-20th century as mental health policy shifted away from large asylums: The state deinstitutionalized thousands of patients without adequate community support.
More broadly, to deinstitutionalize something is to dismantle or reduce its institutional character.
Managing without assistance
- self-determinationControl over one's fate
- normalizationAdjusting to a standard
- inclusionBeing made part
- mainstreamingIncluding in standard settings
self-advocacy · developmental disabilities · group homes · Willowbrook · Americans with Disabilities Act · choice · dignity · accessibility
Release from legal bondage
- releaseTo let go
- dischargeRelease of substance outward
- freedomAbsence of constraint
- unshackleRemove bonds from
liberation movement · anti-psychiatry · patient rights · autonomy · self-direction · agency · empowerment · mad pride
Local non-hospital support
- outpatient servicesTreatment without overnight stay
- group homesShared supervised residences
- supported housingHomes with assistance available
- case managementOverseeing individual client services
medication management · crisis intervention · peer support · day programs · halfway houses · aftercare · continuity of care
Change from one state
- social servicesPublic aid programs
- housing assistancePrograms helping afford shelter
- vocational trainingJob-skill education
- life skillsCompetencies for daily living
family reunification · support networks · homelessness · safety net · social workers · outreach · stabilization · adjustment
Improve by correcting faults
- legislationOfficial enactment of statutes
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
- mandateFormal authoritative directive
- regulationOfficial rules governing conduct
oversight · compliance · facility closure · federal funding · block grants · downsizing · phase-out · accountability
independent living
Managing without assistance
- self-determinationControl over one's fate
- normalizationAdjusting to a standard
- inclusionBeing made part
mainstreaming · self-advocacy · developmental disabilities · group homes · Willowbrook · Americans with Disabilities Act · choice · dignity · accessibility
emancipation
Release from legal bondage
unshackle · liberation movement · anti-psychiatry · patient rights · autonomy · self-direction · agency · empowerment · mad pride · human rights
community care
Local non-hospital support
- outpatient servicesTreatment without overnight stay
- group homesShared supervised residences
- supported housingHomes with assistance available
case management · medication management · crisis intervention · peer support · day programs · halfway houses · aftercare · continuity of care
transition
Change from one state
- social servicesPublic aid programs
- housing assistancePrograms helping afford shelter
- vocational trainingJob-skill education
life skills · family reunification · support networks · homelessness · safety net · social workers · outreach · stabilization · adjustment · readmission
reform
Improve by correcting faults
- legislationOfficial enactment of statutes
- decentralizationDistributing power from center
- mandateFormal authoritative directive
regulation · oversight · compliance · facility closure · federal funding · block grants · downsizing · phase-out · accountability · implementation
deinstitutionalizeinstitutionalize
Establish as norm
commit · confine · hospitalize · incarcerate · admit
deinstitutionalizeinstitutionalize
Establish as norm
formalize · systematize · bureaucratize · centralize · establish