Managed Mental Health Care in the Public Sector

Book excerpt: The rapid spread of managed care into public and community mental health systems is creating a dramatic transformation of traditional public sector settings. This radical change is affecting administrators, managers, and clinicians.Intended as a survival manual, this book begins with an overview of the history, concepts, ideology, and ethics of public sector managed care and then proceeds in focus from system to program management to clinical program levels. With a concluding section on advocacy, evaluation, research, and training issues, Managed Mental Health Care in the Public Sector examines how public sector managed mental health care can be approached with a positive spirit, an excitement about the potential to create dramatic and beneficial system changes, and a genuine interest in investigating the relative merits of every aspect of managed care systems.