S IN(;I: iJj 5 IS a l\iental Hospital Institute, what happens in general hospitals might seem to be a little outside the primary topic. However, the nature an(l locale of psychiatric treatment is changing and with it, no doubt, the nature of these Institutes. You may have noted that since Juiie 1962 Ie,,tal Hospitals has had the subtitle ‘ I’he Journal of Hospital and Community Psychiatry’ instead of the former “Hospital Journal of the American Psychatric Association.” In line with this, the focus of this Institute is on “Programs for Effective Treatment of the Mentally Ill” without specifying that these should be in any particular type of institution. At first glance it might seem that general hospital psychiatry is a fairly distinct area, clearly separated from the topics outlined by my fellow speakers. Further reflection, however, will show that general hospital psychiatry overlaps and merges with cornmunity psychiatry, with much psychiatric research, and with academic psychiatry, which is mainly associated with university general hospitals. (;eneral hospital psychiatry likewise covers a wide variety of programs and approaches. For example, a general hospital psychiatric inpatient service might consist of any of the following: 1) A psychiatric consultation or liaison service only. 2) Treatment of psychiatric patients housed in wards with medical and surgical patients. 3) A separate ward unit, fully open. with no special precautions.