This study reflected on the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform beginning with clinical practice, highlighting current questions and issues. This study is a contribution to the historiography of a continuing process, making it possible to incur methodological risks by carring on an analysis during the process itself. In spite of numerous difficulties, during these years the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform has been embraced by several social classes, resulting in remarkable advances in the perception of assistance to the person with mental suffering, while increasing society's sensitivity that another kind of attention, more therapeutic, human and liberating, is possible to be given. Several formal and informal strategies and partnerships have been expanding the range of alternatives in clinical practice, resulting in comforting and successful stories in psychiatric treatment. Even so, it is necessary to keep under surveillance and to be attentive to ideological and clinical practice retrocession.
Policy making; Psychiatric nursing; Mental health