By Judith G. Fales, co-editor Buffalo Healthy Living

Mental illness has been treated, or not treated, in many ways in the United States. People were put in institutions, then released from the institutions, often becoming homeless with no treatment. Co-authors Matina Stevis-Gridneff and Koba Ryckewaert recently documented their experience in visiting Geel in Belgium, where families have taken people with psychiatric conditions into their homes for centuries. By the end of the 19th century, almost 2,000 boarders in Geel lived with families in foster care.

Although the practice was initially met with suspicion when the field of psychiatry was new, families taking in boarders is now seen as a humane alternative to institutionalization or neglect. Renowned neurologist Dr. Oliver Sacks wrote a preface for Geel Revisited, a book that examined 19 boarders over several decades. He said, “There has always been controversy about how ‘disturbed’ or ‘eccentric’ people should be treated… Should they be treated as ill, possibly dangerous, confined to institutions? Or is there a chance that a more human and social approach, trying to reintegrate them into family and community life, a life of love and work, will succeed as well?… Even those who could seem to be incurably afflicted can, potentially, live full, dignified, loved and secure lives.” One boarder, Mr. Hayen, now in his third foster home in 30 years, said, “I have a mighty life here because I look to freedom, like every person…”

The foster program is connected to Geel’s state psychiatric hospital, whose staff selects the boarders. They include people with schizophrenia or other psychoses if they have settled into treatment and can function well in a family. Families wishing to take in boarders and their homes are screened and approved by hospital staff. Hospital caseworkers are available to help families 24/7. Public incidents involving boarders are rare, but when they do occur, trained police deescalate the situation and call the hospital immediately. This is so different from our country where police are often the first to be called to handle situations involving an individual with mental illness, and where lack of training can result in violence and even death.

Can this model of care work in the United States? Ellen Baxter believes the answer is “yes.” She is founder and director of Broadway Housing Communities, a New York charity. After living in Geel for a year to learn more about the fostering program, Baxter returned to raise money for buildings in New York City where people with psychiatric disorders could live. The newest, in Harlem, is a “vertical Geel.” Both families and single adults live there. Some have a mental illness, and many do not.

Greet Vandeperre, Chairwoman of Geel’s Psychiatric Foster Care Council, said, “I think you must have trust, believe that every person has capabilities. To first see the good in people, and to know that what’s wrong is only a little part of the person.”

Read the New York Times article at https://tinyurl.com/28kv7x6x, or NPR’s article at https://tinyurl.com/452t2mmm. Visit https://www.broadwayhousing.org to learn more about Ellen Baxter’s foundation.