Mental health II: Balancing institutional and community-based care

This policy brief provides an overview of the balance between institutional and community-based mental health care in Europe. It summarizes recent evidence on what should be the essential components of mental-health service provision based on evidence of effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. It also looks at how resource limitations may influence the development of the mix of services provided, and how economic barriers that may prevent financial resources being moved from institutional to community-based care might be overcome.