Psychiatric Rehabilitation Services in Turkey

The first rehabilitation therapy in Turkey was performed in Bakirkoy State Mental Hospital in the late 1930s by Mazhar Osman, the chief of the psychiatry hospital. He achieved the first steps of occupational therapy. In the 1960s, increased attention was paid to occupational therapies, and the long-term inpatients were provided with courses and sheltered workshops. A day hospital, community mental health clinics, sheltered workshops, supervised work placement, and half-way homes were integrated into the treatment. In the 1990s, delays in rehabilitation occurred, and the day hospital was closed. Since then, medication has dominated treatment. Rehabilitation programs are not well coordinated, and the patient accessibility is limited. In late 2005, a day hospital was reestablishment at Bakirkoy State Training and Research Hospital for Psychiatry, Neurology and Neurosurgery to carry out a psychosocial rehabilitation program and psychosocial rehabilitation for outpatients, acute inpatients, chronic inpatients, and their relatives. Future plans include social skill training groups, family training groups, case management, and improvement of occupational and vocational therapies. Other rehabilitation services are also reemerging: Kocaeli University Hospital has a day hospital, and the State Hospital of Manisa for Psychiatry recently added a rehabilitation. In addition, half-way houses are being built for patients receiving treatment at the State Hospital of Elazig. There is an increasing interest in rehabilitation in Turkey requiring new models and attempts at improvement.