MENTAL PATIENTS.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXXIX, Issue 9491, 3 January 1919, Page 8

MENTAL PATIENTS.

AN 'INTERESTING.. IIEUORT

Dri Frank Hiiy'v<» report on the hwnlal hospitals of * the- Dominion, furnislxes most: iustriictiye rending. It is shown.'/that : tlib. varidus nieiital hospitals'during, the pa-st year contained 45,15.-.patient*,, iiiT increase; of 140 ,'for tlie year. Of these 19()4 wer^ femaJ© patients'. The recoveries were 328. Those discharged- who. did: not ; recover niiimb&red. 104. The. percentage :of recbyerios: is greater in; ■ female*; titan male^s; but the average for both sexes is 35:27 r ..•;."•' ■■••■.'■.■•.■ „•"■■■■■■ .-'■ . ;. i. ■ .

■ The total cost- per patient for 1917 was £50.17s 72d'(nptVincl'uding rent for accommodation, supplied), .'reduced, to £35, 2«.. Lsd:." net by receipte ; for maintenaiico and from farms. v .

. (Dr. Hay: remarks :—The 'yeiir under .review 'may! be .'accepted ias ;,a. typical Var year, and ,«ome provisional cpnclu.sio^tis may ,be approached ,on the effect of war conditions on tliei populliation of Nek i -Zealand: in relation to the inci-. fdence of:^mental disorder.- :_ people,are apt to b©: carried away, into hasty coriclusioii^ .by^tlxe total number of, those resident in 'mental hospitals 5 shbwhig a yearly;'increase, forgetting that acjciimulationi is inevitable.. We ..have a cpmparatively VJow death-rate; and we have a comparatively high-recovery-rate.,' and a. few. pafcifliits'are-discharged txnrecovered, the doatlis- arid discharges ca'mipt balariee |the admissio'KS, 'and' the. differeiice, for the most part^ is." made up of-incurable casps. These:piitienta in institntionis live' longer .than they would outside, 'and■.•so year; after, year numbers go u\i. arid become dis-propor-.tionate to 'the general popiilation. *Tlio true:test of the extent of.mental disorder in the population is -tp. be; found in "occurring" insanity,'■: of whidi rt'd-:. missioDAS to me-nttil hospitefe ..furnish the best record. ■','•'■"'.-'■ V '■."■■''".', ' .It is shpw;n hi." tabular/form that the ratio of mental.• patients to 10.000.general-, population is 7:52 for 1917,agiiin.st; 7.74 for the me-iin yeai-s ' 1910 to 1912; ■■■,•.'■■• '•■'. '■;/ ■." ': , .•'■■•■

'{■"The pareu>ts ahtL wives of .our soldiers have been subjected to great and unusual mental stress," re marks,; .Dr. Hay, "and' there were" in 1917 no..ma-' terial cbnditioiiis to cmuiterbalfl.hce '.the--stress,'. which : did^not ex-ist in .19^1, yet the. figures 1 disclose that in the very ; age-groups .which, include.' the near and', dear the nitio of lneatal'dLsbrder is re-■ duced. 'The presump-tion which occurs naturally is that the* fathers...arid- mo-, thers of our/best are themselves of sterner stuff, and able to'•.•withstand, anxieties and griefs.' Tknibtles-s this, is time to ..a. large -extent; but the <explan'atipn is rather to, be found in, the nature of tlie stress and. the altruism it,ha.s callecl into beiiig. The determin-, ation to resist'the. barabaric assault on' liberty, and. justice has developed aml^ strengthene<t the higher emotjonsj and braced.'-the individiVal as; it, has the nation.', Next to eitsuring' that the ruth- ' ■less "ambition of" a' State or group', of/ ,Bba-t;es, shall' be' curbed 'for- ali\ time,' the' rule-rs-' of ,the, civilised; nations -have, placed,';upon, them the 'j'esporisibility to :understand,;'and," ■unclerstaiklirig, to dire<^t the higher social sense now per-, vading"'.and"uniting their comm\m;ities, •so.'that..the uniqu<*•• opportunity may not be lost to the commonwealth.

:. ','flteturiiiirig to the nature of . Uie stress which has b^en placed upon tho .parents, wives; and. othea- relatives, one; realises that it is soinething' tei"ribly real' leaving no room or occasion for ruorbid -.vanities' or mischievous 'introspections. These people have m,et t'hoir troubles iit -the spirit yin which the soldiers have,n'iet the ciiemy; they have nover'•'doubted the cause" nor, even in the dark days, a. victorious^ •issue; they have known' tlio worst that.could; befall them when' they 'bade fareweiH, ■'and came to look .upon, anythjng thatwas not death as'• ■• something to be ;thankful!. for, • whilo death itsci'tf, if' it laid. the. soldier low, brought the bereaved, into -a", morally ■ exalted community, of- suffering-. They have had ■no reproaches/ sliadowiiig them, nor have they been weighted by petty vox.atiotts; and -because they had had to do with great things and have, don-e^ them gi'eatly, 'their reason hits" been preserved." /"■■■'■ '■ '/'