Established in 1987, the AIDS Control Admin-
istration provides public education and surveil-
lance, professional education, and patient support
services for persons with acquired immune defi-
ciency syndrome (AIDS). The Administration
consults and coordinates its work with twenty-
four local health departments. Each local health
department has counseling and testing sites where
free tests and free consultations are available.

The Administration funds clinical activities for
the diagnosis and evaluation of patients with
AIDS. It also administers grants to community
organizations for gay and minority outreach ef-
forts. In addition, the Administration is responsi-
ble for the Maryland Center for AIDS-Related
Educational Services (MDCARES). The Center
coordinates all professional training concerned
with AIDS.

MENTAL HYGIENE
ADMINISTRATION

Henry T. Harbin, M.D., Ph.D., Director
Ellen Anderson, R.N., M.A., Deputy Director

201 W. Preston St.
Baltimore 21201 Telephone: 225-6611

The Mental Hygiene Administration originated
in 1886 as the State Lunacy Commission (Chapter
487, Acts of 1886). The Commission was estab-
lished to inspect public and private institutions for
the insane and to advise their boards of managers.
In 1922, the Commission was replaced by the
Board of Mental Hygiene (Chapter 29, Acts of
1922). The Board, in turn, was superseded by the
Department of Mental Hygiene in 1949 (Chapter
685, Acts of 1949). The 1949 law abolished not
only the Board of Mental Hygiene, but also the
separate governing boards of the State mental hos-
pitals, and gave the Department of Mental Hy-
giene responsibility for the custody, care, and
treatment of mentally ill persons. The Department
of Mental Hygiene became part of the Depart-
ment of Health and Mental Hygiene in 1969
(Chapter 77, Acts of 1969) and subsequently was
renamed the Mental Hygiene Administration.

The Administration is headed by a Director,
certified in psychiatry by the American Board of
Psychiatry and Neurology and appointed by the
Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene. The Di-
rector is responsible for duties assigned by the
Secretary and for supervision of Mental Hygiene
Administration hospitals and facilities.

Under the provisions of the Maryland Commu-
nity Mental Health Services Act of 1966, the Di-
rector of Mental Hygiene, with the approval of
the Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene, is
empowered to make State grants-in-aid to further
community mental health services (Chapter 125,
Acts of 1966). The Director supervises the pro-
grams receiving these grants-in-aid. The Act also
provided for the establishment of local mental
health advisory committees (Code Health — Gen-
eral Article, sec. 10-208).

To improve continuity of care between commu-
nity and hospital programs, the Administration
has adopted a regionalized structure. Assistant
Directors serve Eastern, Western, Southern and
Central Maryland. Their regional offices imple-
ment policies to shorten length of hospital stays
and improve community mental health programs
for the severely psychiatrically ill.

The Administration oversees the Walter P.
Carter Community Mental Health and Retarda-
tion Center; Crownsville Hospital Center; Eastern
Shore Hospital Center; Thomas B. Finan Hospital
Center; Highland Health Psychiatric Unit; Clifton
T. Perkins Hospital Center; the Regional Insti-
tutes for Children and Adolescents at Baltimore,
Cheltenham, and Rockville; Springfield Hospital
Center; Spring Grove Hospital Center; Upper
Shore Community Mental Health Center; and
Tawes-Bland Bryant Nursing Home.

Maryland Advisory Council on Mental Hygiene

Chairperson: Stephen T. Baron, 1988

Diane Cabot, 1987; Joseph Cowen, M.D., 1987;
M. Sue Diehl, 1987; Margaret P. L. Kostritsky,
1987; Patricia A. Newton, M.D., 1987; Rev.
Ralph Ciampo, 1988; Josephine L. Kohn, 1988;
Marie C. McCarthy, 1988; Joseph I. Pines, 1988;
Joseph Sachs, 1988; Katrina Boverman, 1989;
Michele S. Dear, 1989; Richard Grumbacher,
1989; Marjorie M. Kabwit, 1989; Bilha D.
Marcus, 1989; Irma Van Sickle, 1989; one
vacancy.

201 W. Preston St.
Baltimore 21201 Telephone: 225-6610

The Maryland Advisory Council on Mental Hy-
giene was created in 1976 (Chapter 746, Acts of
1976). It advises the Mental Hygiene Administra-
tion in carrying out policies regarding the social,
economic, and medical problems of mental hy-
giene.