Outpatient commitment for "revolving door" patients: compliance and treatment.

This paper describes the use and effectiveness of outpatient commitment in inducing compliance with treatment among chronically mentally ill "revolving door" patients, those who recurrently become dangerous and revolve though civil commitment courts as well as state mental hospitals. Patients characteristics, treatment modalities, and mental health center actions to ensure compliance are described. Comparison of those patients ordered to outpatient commitment with those having other court dispositions (involuntary hospitalization and release) indicates that outpatient commitment induces compliance and leads to treatment maintenance even after the court order terminates.