MENTAL HOSPITALS.

Press, Volume LXVII, Issue 14237, 28 December 1911, Page 7

MENTAL HOSPITALS.

STATEMENT BY THE HON l> BUBDO.

The statement mad© by the official visitor to the Auckland Mental Hospital was yesterday brought under tho notice of tho Hon. D. Buddo by a' "Press" reporter. Mr Buddo is the Minister in. Charge of tho Department, -which, administers tho mental j hospitals of the Dominion. I Mr BuddiTeaid that an effort was being made to make provision which would cone with the overcrowding which existed in tho mental Additions were to bo made to the Scacliffe, Sunnyside, Porirua, and Auckland institutions, and he hoped that theso additions would bo a-vailabio an early date, to meet the recognised jack of accommodation for mental patients. Tho difficulty' seemed to have come about through a considerablo proportion of tho population starting lifo in tho Dominion at an ago when mental troubles were more frequent than they are at a later period of life. - The statistics did not show that there was an excessive rate'•■-.'of-mental affliction. Tho population. iSdd increased thirty per cent, during Iflfn past ten years,.and naturally the number of mentally-afflicted • had also increased considerably during that time. Tho result was that there had arisen a necessity for greater provision for their accommodation. It iiad not been anticipated that this increased accommodation would be required before the new buildings at Tbkaami were ready. Tho new institution was intended tor patients who would be benefited by outdoor treatment,' and a ] system of classification "would bo put into operation there. It would relieve the overcrpwding to some extent, but tho additions would also be pushed on. Hβ believed that a tender had been let for the additions at Auckland. There had not been any complaint as to overcrowding at Shinnyside, but the additions thero tverc considered necessary. He fully recognised that overcrowding did exist in soma of the but he hoped that tho provision which tho Department was making would cope with the difficulty.