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Franco Basaglia and the Revolution in Mental Health Care

Louis Hayes

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Published in The Man Who Closed The Asylums: Franco Basaglia And The Revolution In Mental Health Care

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The Man Who Closed the Asylums: Franco Basaglia and the Revolution in Mental Health Care

by Jean Baptiste Henri Savigny

4.3 out of 5

Language	:	English
File size	:	3320 KB
Text-to-Speech	:	Enabled
Screen Reader	:	Supported
Enhanced typesetting	:	Enabled
Print length	:	424 pages

Background

Franco Basaglia was born in Venice, Italy, in 1924. He studied medicine at the University of Padua and graduated in 1950. After completing his studies, Basaglia worked in a variety of mental hospitals in Italy. He quickly became disillusioned with the way that people with mental illness were treated. He believed that the system was inhumane and that it did not help people to recover.

In 1961, Basaglia was appointed director of the Provincial Hospital for Mental Diseases in Gorizia, Italy. This was a large mental hospital with over 600 patients. Basaglia immediately began to implement changes to the way that the hospital was run. He abolished the use of physical restraints and seclusion. He also allowed patients to have more freedom to move around the hospital and to interact with the outside world.

Basaglia's reforms were met with resistance from the hospital staff and from the community. However, he persisted with his work, and over time, he began to see positive results. The patients became more active and engaged, and their symptoms began to improve.

In 1971, Basaglia closed the Provincial Hospital for Mental Diseases in Gorizia. This was a radical move, and it sent shockwaves through the Italian mental health system. However, Basaglia believed that it was the right thing to do. He believed that people with mental illness should be treated in the community, not in institutions.

After closing the hospital in Gorizia, Basaglia founded a number of community-based mental health centers. He also worked to reform the Italian mental health law. In 1978, the Italian Parliament passed Law 180, which abolished the use of mental hospitals in Italy.

Basaglia's Legacy

Franco Basaglia's work has had a profound impact on the way that mental illness is treated around the world. He is credited with helping to create a more humane and compassionate mental health system.

Basaglia's work has been criticized by some for being too idealistic. However, there is no doubt that he has made a significant contribution to the field of mental health care. His work has helped to improve the lives of millions of people with mental illness.