Hospital specializing in the treatment of persons with mental illness. Mental hospitals have a number of differences from other hospitals. First of all, they generally have elaborate procedures to prevent suicide in patients (for example clocks and other appliances with cords are not allowed and access to stairways is restricted). Second, they attempt to reduce the amount of sensory stimulation that the patients have. Contrary to popular belief, mental hospitals are generally quiet, even boring places. Third, mental hospitals often try to provide as much as possible a normal environment. For example, unlike most other hospitals, patients in mental hospitals wear street clothes rather than examination patient garments.
There are a number of different types of mental hospitals. One is the crisis stabilization unit which is in effect an emergency room for mental situations. Because involuntary commitment laws in many jurisdictions require a judge to issue a commitment order within a short time of entering the unit (often 72 hours) and because moving a mental patient can be exteremely dangerous especially given the possibility of suicide, many of these stabilization units have conference rooms which are used as courtrooms for emergency commitment procedures.
Another type of mental hospital is used for medium term care lasting several weeks. These are often found within larger hospitals. Most drugs used for psychiatric purposes take several weeks to take effect and the main purpose of these hospitals is to watch over the patient as the drugs take effect, after which they are discharged.
One other type of mental hospital is designed for long term care. In the United States, these are generally operated by the state government and exist in a few centralized locations. In many cases, persons within these hospitals have been charged with serious crimes and have been found not guilty by reason of insanity. As a result, in addition to the elaborate precautions to prevent suicide there are also often elaborate precautions escape (such as razor wire). The treatment of persons within such institutions has been a long standing issue.
One final type of mental institution which is not a hospital is community based half-way houses which provide assisted living for mental patients for an extended period of time. These institutions are considered to be one of the most important part of a mental health system by many psychiatrist, but however tend to be extremely underfunded or non-existent.