I was recently involuntarily held in a mental hospital where I went through prison like conditions (strip search, had to wear scrubs, was locked in a room outside certain times a day, stuff like that) and thankfully came out in one piece after 8 days of this crap. I was just wondering why we subject people to these conditions when they haven’t even committed a crime?
Unfortunately, this seems to be the answer. Most people who are in short-term institutions like this get there through some type of psychotic break. Their incentive is not to really provide any care, but to maintain an orderly environment while the break passes (whether a manic episode, suicide attempt, etc.). This is also why they will tend to hold people for the maximum length legally allowed - they can bill more and most of them have guaranteed funding.