Psychiatric Patients With Others In Ward

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30478, 27 June 1964, Page 20

Psychiatric Patients With Others In Ward

Aa arraraeatewt iegra three jears az* rak*r vtaei psycfifanrie poffiesa* tare bee* Kxed wife pstiesxs in z ward «f fee Prwness Margaret HMprza. has proved very saceevffsL aerordfatg to fee aetcai aad nurot*Z kzS raivoed. A ward. Ward BL E-.rzza.-7 saa 2fi reiral aaf izosczmssateiy. zerjx-'. t* wzere empty beds happen V. -Jt rva._a-. .* A_j,i attached to toe vzri are a zpmner of pt7<»- jsrrjt txj vKiesa, averaging aatcff 1* M-.urioy to TnThe eaefefeed ward was started about three years agt vzzs after fee sf Dr . X K. E Dotaan, who founded the North Carnet bsry Eosppal Btards departeds. Tie psyeszatnc amt (m--evhac hath toe m-paGesa and cay potiestsi at toe Princess Margaret Eo*p=.ta. is ran in e-zzrtoztwa with the psycfisatrie eeAffleat chafe atj

Tie zes ~ Tfxrz Zl in dsreety zsder fee ®e&ta. Kxer—raupSE: -if fee Praeess Maraßree Dr. A C S Dtci. The wart ssrer zf wari Bl is prznafey wsfe mofeeai cases Tse zsyrfeafee =fe ias fecr feaized EEen. The saf £fe=3«s of fee fesjrai -mn far tfcs reiaferejy Large r znezafeefe ma. to z rxrrifee-efeex service fros trazzed nzrses ia fee arfe A-fer.»aga asee ?f fee eszeu save furoiai psychiatrie mars'rag v&iifiearioes. they ®et eneEnmees eferv in the mm. Stxfing is kept at a I —V- - 3 * do not save to be fomri from ostsade the safe when any of the nenes is on leave ar sick. The eooperatioa with the peystsr feerapy wi feerapy feartnecu fe» hospitaL bofe of wfces are on fee «jt-» fioor as the ward. In the ocr-ipatpzial therapy depar psyritiatrie patiem form ahozt twothirds of fee attendance Oeenpatioßai theraptsa are, in fart, green psyefuatric instruruue as part of their normal training eeune. The staff ■esfahiitftmeta of eecspational toeraptsa is two, but Enfor- ; • rnately only me is esppiJoyed J became of the sttioail shortage of «alMed peepie in tins • profr Hirn. Nevuthelesn, the department gives a good deal Lmlws It rto Ft. 1 * -* ini 4 MR Ddjl, IIBMvHtoMM in groepe. to psychiatric patients. The phytootherapy department gives patients a half •hoar programme of r ria ration and recreaticn each weekxtay The mefical staff of the Dr. Dobson, a visting psyI duatrist and a psychtottie legistiar (a registrar is a young doctor a year or two 1 beyond the boose surgeon level). A bouse Kirgeoa is shared wife the medical patients of Bl and fee whole of Ward 83. The hospital board's medical social workers are giving betne and resettling aid to patients until the positioa of psychiatric social worker is filled. A

viffiEsey i_i- miri far anpzmt amd stag, zahnfeg Dr D«k and Mfe? J. Eafeuefe fee EtasrtE < fee i'.s7Ka_ azr»e fea". few &£.- tfefees 'save zeea smi is. —.tsagrg psyifes-. zfeie pafeeEs si eHijtsseSiit: vtfe ofeero. E .rryfessg, the h«ytaame patieEa are z iefe wte fee ethers, sfees trey do fefegv far fesse are t«j sei «• fesahaec to, ?.ck after feessssves. The zsedaml pa&esss are eertajsLy a he-1? to the ptyehiafeit zafeefes, as often feey provide fee isßestn aai ad risers whom fee. aentapy festurbed often need so b»£y. nnedesfehy, one '< fee main joes of fee: fesses in fee psychiatric «ait| is to “net atofessde" patatk, teww flmir trsriMad and aettt fees in »£jt I Rifeifefe patients are MH atitted to fee tmit ssuaSy for 'treaxmeaz, sseae are brooght m far dtagnastie asaasanaest. If a bed H zvaßable. reqzests for admmntm are seldom deeased: fee patients tisere- - fore represeuf an wsstieefed sastpie of mental ilinesset : and nay sa> dangrrous is very rare, bustier, and no mefeicad patient has even been injured by a psyduatrie patient Mathers Wife BaMea . Prwriston is made in the unit for the gdunstioa of mothers with ymmg balnes. .where fee mother has a pueroenl psychoses (a psychotic iitoess after childbirth). Fostering seif-eotfdenee in these ■patients in their role of motherhood is an hsportazt zart of their treatment 'Twelve babies were admitted with their mothers during a’ reeert 12-tßonth period. In fee same period, 197 other patients were adasitted. The average in-patient stay was 163 days, thoagh many patients woidd attend fori some time afterwards as day or ottt-patients. During the period, 24 patients were passed on to psychiatric hospitals—lfi each to Sunnyside Hospital and the Queen Mary HrnpitaL Hamner Springs, and four to Ashburn Halt Dunedin.

Consideration is bow being given to extending the unit to occupy a complete ward. There would be no difficulty in finding patients for the extra beds, bat fee depart

meat's staff is stretched to the limit by the present load, and saitabie additional staff, especially qualified psychiatrists, would not be easy to find.