Psychiatric Annex To Be Opened Next Month

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29866, 5 July 1962, Page 16

Psychiatric Annex To Be Opened Next Month

The new Calvary day department, the psychiatric day-hospital annex of Calvary Hospital, should open about the middle of next month, the Mother Superior (the Rev. Mother Benedicta) said yesterday. Sister Oliver, of the Mount St. Margaret Hospital. West Ryde. Sydney, was expected to arrive about August 7 to take charge of the department, she added. The department will operate only on a small scale at first with about six patients at any one time and about 20 aittending at some period each week. Renovations are in progress on the building which will house the department during this initial stage, a cottage in the hospital grounds. The facilities to be provided include a group room or lounge, a doctor’s room, a waiting-room, a treatment room, a dining-room and kitchenette. and a ceramics room, where clay modelling will be carried out. Two or three beds will be provided in the hospital for patients required to be kept overnight for any reason. Patients would ‘‘attend’’ the day department rather than be "admitted to” it, said Mother Benedicta. They would come at the recommendation of a general practitioner or psychiatric specialist. In the department, they would be able to call on the services of their own psychiatrist. and w’ould a’so have the help of their priest or minister.

In general, a patient would not come in every day in the week, at least after the first week or so. He or she might attend on. say. two half-days a week or perhaps only one half-day a week. This would

avoid disruption of employment or home situation, a most important point for a psychiatric patient. Although full-time psychiatric hospitals were still very necessary, those who had to be cared for in them sometimes found it difficult to reorient themselves to face every-day life in the world outside, and had to undergo a period of rehabilitation. If the break with the outside could be avoided, rehabilitation would not be necessary. Where a patient's symptoms led to family difficulties, the day hospital could often lift the burden sufficiently to make it bearable, so that the family need not be disrupted Mother Benedicta added. Domiciliary help might be needed to make up for the patient's absence, but this was more economical in everyway than waiting until fulltime psychiatric treatment was needed.

A joint professional and lay advisory committee had been appointed and would be convened soon to make final arrangements for the opening. Mother Benedicta said. It was intended to form a committee of voluntary lay helpers to give general help with the running of the department. especially in occupational therapy.

2,440,000 Dollars Found.— Police were today looking for the owner of 2.403.000 dollars found in the boot of an old car yesterday. The cacne was found by workmen renorating a row of garages. The Federal Bureau of Investigation said that three pistols and a sack of ammunition were discovered with the money.—Jersey City, July 4.