For more than three years the Massachusetts Mental Health Center has included in its treatment program the opportunity for psychotic women to care for their infants and young children in the hospital. The present paper reports on the relationship between psychological studies of 12 such mothers and psychiatric ratings of the therapeutic usefulness of "joint admission."
At Cassel Hospital in England, in 1948, emotionally disturbed mothers were first given the opportunity to care for their infants and children on an adult mental hospital ward. Douglas reported in 19562 that mothers with postpartum psychotic reactions admitted under this program were not likely to relapse after discharge. On the basis of his extensive experience at Cassel Hospital, Main6 concludes that it is also beneficial for mothers with neurotic depression to have their children with them throughout their hospitalization.
Since our first joint admission, 20