Militaire psychiatrie in de Tweede Wereldoorlog

Military psychiatry in World War II In the twentieth century the scope of military psychiatry has widened considerably. After Albert J. Glass three main fields can be distinguished. Primary prevention, aimed at the prevention of psychiatric disorders in soldiers, concerns activities like selection and training, Secondary prevention deals with the treatment of the mental problems in order to prevent permanent mental disability. Especially in the field of long term treatment military psychiatry went its own way. The connection with the medical model was severed. Institutional treatment was emphasised. The context of military organisation offered far more possibilities for preventive actions than the less hierarchical structured civil life. The military psychiatry that took shape during World War II, can justifiably be characterized as the first large-scale form of social psychiatry. It took civil mental health care years to follow.