[10] The model was spread across the US and eventually internationally starting in the 1950s, led largely by the National Council of Jewish Women.
[2] In the mid-1990s New York City added "16 new clubhouses" that were funded, in part by "savings from the closing of several state mental hospitals into community programs.
[2] In contrast to traditional day-treatment and other day program models, clubhouse participants are called "members" (as opposed to "patients" or "clients") and restorative activities focus on their strengths and abilities, not their illness.
[2] Members and staff work together to run structured day programs that follow the workday of the community where a given club is located.
[2] A review of research on the effectiveness of the clubhouse model in helping people found that evidence was limited by lack of randomized controlled trials, wide differences in the kinds of outcomes that were studied, and lack of long-term follow-up; these limitations make it difficult to generalize the results.