Help Wanted (1958)

Duration: 25:05:00

Year Published: 1958

Sound: sound

Description: Presented by the Junior League of Houston, this 1958 educational film evaluates available mental health services for both children and adults in Houston. The Junior League convened a Mental Health Study Group to look into the question in January 1957. The Study Group identifies problems including understaffing, long wait times, lack of training opportunities, and limited facilities. At the time, only Baylor College of Medicine and the University of Houston offered programs to train mental health professionals. The Study Group recommends more funding for facilities and the expansion of university programs to attract more mental health students. It also addresses the shifting understanding of mental illness as a disease, and talks about emerging research and diagnostic equipment. Please note, this film uses dated and ableist language to describe persons with intellectual disabilities. The Texas Archive of the Moving Image does not condone the use of the word “retarded,” but presents this film as it was originally created, because to do otherwise would be the same as to claim this term never existed.