Valleyview Hospital in British Columbia closes

1986. Following the trend of deinstitutionalization in the post-war period, British Columbia closed Valleyview Hospital. This trend was in contrast to the segregation employed during the height of the eugenics movement in the early twentieth century.

In 1959, British Columbia’s Home for the Aged was renamed Valleyview Hospital. The institution largely focused on the care of elderly patients with mental disabilities, and the change in name reflected a change in mental health treatment, which can be attributed to new knowledge about the physical, psychological, and social aspects of aging. This change in treatment constituted of gradually moving elderly patients from the institution into community care, which eventually led to the closure of the hospital.

Although many patients were good candidates for rehabilitation, they faced many obstacles, including insufficient community resources (extending to family and nursing homes), and unsupportive community attitudes (Josey, 1965).

-Erna Kurbegovic, and Colette Leung

  • Josey, K. (1965). From Custodial Care to Rehabilitation: The Changing Philosophy at Valleyview Hospital. (Unpublished masters thesis.). University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.

Valleyview Hospital in British Columbia closes

1986. Following the trend of deinstitutionalization in the post-war period, British Columbia closed Valleyview Hospital. This trend was in contrast to the segregation employed during the height of the eugenics movement in the early twentieth century.

In 1959, British Columbia’s Home for the Aged was renamed Valleyview Hospital. The institution largely focused on the care of elderly patients with mental disabilities, and the change in name reflected a change in mental health treatment, which can be attributed to new knowledge about the physical, psychological, and social aspects of aging. This change in treatment constituted of gradually moving elderly patients from the institution into community care, which eventually led to the closure of the hospital.

Although many patients were good candidates for rehabilitation, they faced many obstacles, including insufficient community resources (extending to family and nursing homes), and unsupportive community attitudes (Josey, 1965).

-Erna Kurbegovic, and Colette Leung

  • Josey, K. (1965). From Custodial Care to Rehabilitation: The Changing Philosophy at Valleyview Hospital. (Unpublished masters thesis.). University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.