In 1823 McLean Hospital was founded to provide "moral treatment" for the wealthy mentally ill among the Boston Brahmins. Over more than 150 years McLean has maintained its reputation as one of the leading psychiatric facilities in the world. Its history reflects the history of mental-health treatment, where one method replaces another in a seemingly endless parade, and the answers remain as elusive as ever. The author, a journalist with the Boston Globe, traces McLean's long history and gives particular attention to the last four decades. Through dozens of interviews with staff and former patients he creates a vivid picture of this unique institution and the people whose lives it has molded. He also shows how McLean and other long-term hospitals are fighting to survive in the age of managed care.
