Twenty-fifth annual report of the trustees of the State Lunatic Hospital, at Worcester. December, 1857.

  • State Lunatic Hospital at Worcester
Date:
1858
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Twenty-fifth annual report of the trustees of the State Lunatic Hospital, at Worcester. December, 1857. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    Of this number there has been discharged:— • Males. Females. Total. Recovered, .... 74 76 150 Improved, .... 35 40 75 Not improved, 4 2 6 Died, ..... 19 25 44 There were remaining in the hospital, at the close of the year, November 80, 1857— Males, ....... 177 Females, ...... 195 Total, . . . . . . 872 It will be seen that one hundred and fifty patients have been discharged as recovered in the course of the year. “ The cause of their commitment ceased to exist,” and they returned to their homes restored to mental and physical health. Seventy-four have been discharged improved. Although many of this number were quite well when they left the hos¬ pital, they cannot be said to have recovered. Some of them are periodically insane, having long intervals of apparent health, during which they remain with their friends. Others possess a low grade of intellect, and were never able to take care of themselves, consequently cannot be consid¬ ered well. There has been during the year an unusual amount of sick¬ ness. In the summer and autumn there were several cases of fever and dysentery. There were also a few cases of pneumo¬ nia, and several cases of consumption. But a large proportion of the disease has been of an ill-defined character, afflicting those who have long been feeble and insane. The standard of health in a hospital for the insane is always low. We look in vain for the signs of vigorous health which might be supposed to exist in a community of such activity. The constant restlessness and lack of attention to the rules
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