Fourth annual report : for the year 1898 / Sunderland Borough Asylum.

  • Sunderland Borough Asylum.
Date:
1899
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Fourth annual report : for the year 1898 / Sunderland Borough Asylum. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    39/56 (page 39)
    There have been some cases of Influenza recently, but none of any other zymotic disease, since the last visit. One serious but not fatal casualty, resulting in the fracture of a rib from an accidental fall, has occurred since then. There were 18 patients confined to bed to-day; 83 are under medical treatment. No mechanical restraint has been employed, and only one patient has, for a few minutes, been secluded, since the last visit. Only one case of wetted bed or bedding occurred since then; and we are informed that all patients liable to wet their beds sleep in associated dormitories under constant supervision. The system is continued here of placing all excited and troublesome patients to sleep in dormitories, reserving the single rooms for quiet cases. The General Paralytics are 21 in number, or 6'3 per cent. ; the male epileptics are 16 per cent., and the female 5 per cent, of the whole, and there are only 4 patients deemed to be actively suicidal. The patients attending chapel on Sunday are usually 73 per cent, of the whole. There are 52 Roman Catholics, for whom a Priest holds a service, and celebrates Mass once a month, but still gratuitously, not even his travelling expenses being paid. We cannot but regard this as discreditable. The associated entertainments are usually attended by about 65 per cent, of the patients. Not many patients walk beyond the Asylum grounds, but about 90 per cent, are exercised on the estate, outside of the airing courts, and about 10 per cent, are confined to them. We should be glad if a larger number could walk outside the grounds. Of the men 80 per cent., and a like proportion of the women are usefully employed—very satisfactory proportions. We saw the hall well filled with an orderly party of patients of both sexes, for whom the dinner provided consisted of meat and potato hash with bread, and with lemonade as beverage. The staff for day duty comprises 23 men and 21 women, and for night duty 4 of each sex. Of the whole, 26 per cent, have under a year’s service, and 48 per cent, over two years,