First published in 1998. This is Volume IV, of seven in the Sociology of Mental Health series. Written in 1962, this study looks at of what mental hospitals actually do, what problems they face, how they use their resources, and how their efficiency can be assessed. We begin in Part I by briefly describing the provision of mental hospitals in England and Wales, and analysing current trends in hospital and community care, together with the arguments for and against the retention of the mental hospital.