This book summarizes findings of studies that are united by a common theme of needs of psychiatric patients in Israel. The studies were performed from 2001-2010, in the Research Unit of Mental Health Services at the Ministry of Health and were motivated by the authors’ deep need to learn more about the met and mainly unmet needs of mentally ill people, and an urgent demand to develop innovative health services or adjust the existing ones to both meet the needs and improve the quality of care and quality of life of their patients. Although the conception of need is a composite one and can be defined in multiple ways to include different aspects of common wishes motivating human activities and ways of their fulfillment, the authors’ used the Bradshaw definition of need (1972) as ‘perceived’ need or what individuals believe they require. Within the context of health care, a need was considered a lack of health or welfare, or a lack of access to care. All the investigations were conducted in parallel with the Mental Health Reform in Israel and therefore reflect the specific needs and demands of deinstitutionalization. The selection of topics, the emphasis on briefly summarizing research findings rather than exhaustively reviewing the scientific literature and providing practical recommendations are intended to make the book an interesting and useful resource for policymakers, clinicians, and other health professionals, such as clinical psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, general and family medical practitioners, nursing personnel, family members and other support persons, and perhaps mentally ill persons themselves.
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